Dive Brief:

• Broward County, Florida is seeking $34 million from a Tutor Perini-led joint venture for delay-related damages on its part of the $800 million Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport south runway expansion, the Miami Herald reported. The county sent Tutor Perini Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Venture a letter, penned by county construction project manager Parsons Transportation Group, on Dec. 31 notifying them of "deficiencies and unresolved issues" regarding what the county says is a two-year delay in the work. 
• The county told TPFLHV that since the damages exceed the $20 million in retainage being held by the county, they intend to withhold future partial payments. Broward County claims TPFLHV’s "inability or unwillingness to provide the supervision, manpower, equipment and other resources needed to satisfactorily complete the project has resulted in substantial additional costs to the county, for which the county will expect full compensation," the Herald reported.
• The letter also asserts that TPFLHV owes the county a total of $9,000 a day for contractual liquidated damages and failure to turn over as-built drawings for the project. TPFLHV representatives deny the county's allegations.

Dive Insight:

According to the Herald, the county’s airport project has been plagued with cost overruns and delays, including a $24.5 million cost overrun by another contractor with $1.5 million attributable to "inadequate oversight and review" by county-hired managers.

Tutor Perini is one of the largest construction companies in the U.S., with revenue of 4.5 billion in 2014 and $1.5 billion for the third quarter of 2015. Aside from infrastructure projects like airports and highways, Tutor Perini is also a joint venture partner on the still-stalled Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle.