Litchfield OKs $111,672 State Street Paving Change Order

Litchfield City Council Meeting | June 4, 2026

LITCHFIELD — The Litchfield City Council on Thursday, June 4, 2026, approved a change order of up to $111,672 for Petersburg Plumbing & Excavating to complete final asphalt restoration on the State Street water main project, choosing the most extensive of three paving options presented by the city’s engineer.

Article Summary: The council unanimously approved the change order, which raises the State Street contract to a new total not to exceed $953,911.45 and is funded through tax increment financing (TIF). The work involves milling and overlaying roughly 24 feet of pavement to give the rebuilt street a uniform finish.

State Street Change Order Key Points:

• The change order is not to exceed $111,672 and is paid from TIF funds.
• The original Petersburg contract was $873,470.32; a prior change order reduced it to $842,239.45, and the new order raises the total to $953,911.45.
• The chosen option mills 2 inches of asphalt and overlays from the existing pavement cold joint to the east curb — about 24 feet — and includes a $51,183 credit for removing the original asphalt.
• The final asphalt finishing had been left out of the original project scope.

The work completes the State Street water main project, in which Petersburg replaced the water main and installed service connections. Vazquez explained that the final asphalt finishing “was left out of the scope of work” originally, meaning the city would have paid for it regardless. Because change orders are not competitively bid, she said, they can be more costly, which made it important to define an accurate scope at the outset.

The city was presented with options by its project engineer, HMG Engineers, and staff and the engineers recommended the most cohesive finish, according to the packet. Crocks told the council the contractor will mill the lane and overlay it, capping the trench with concrete and asphalt so that the patched areas blend in over time. The packet’s engineering memo describes milling and overlaying roughly 24 feet from the existing cold joint to the east curb to eliminate a narrow strip between the original paving seam and the trench edge, with Petersburg crediting $51,183 for removal of the original asphalt.

Fleming used the item to argue for a proposed public works director position, noting the change order was “roughly $111,000” and that a full-time utility professional could prevent such costs. “All it takes is that person taking away one or two of those change orders and they’ve paid for themselves,” he said.

The motion, made by Alderman Dwayne Gerl, passed unanimously among the members present.