figures

Okay. A local contractor with 25 years experience has examined, photographed, and measured the bathrooms and states that he can do BOTH of the elevations in ONE DAY, for less than $5,000 and be done by 3pm. He can give quotes for crushed rock, Poe's rental for a machine to tamp it down, and includes one day of labor to run the machine (labor). We paid $38,5000. That is more than SEVEN times what the actual costs are. Where did that $33,000 go? He also says he can hook up the bathrooms sewer connections for $8 a linear foot. If you generously figure the distance needed as 300 feet that is $2400. If you rent a trenching tool from Poe's and hire a guy to operate it for a day, two days at the most, the costs are STILL less than six grand, well below the $35,000 we paid. That's almost SIX TIMES what the actual costs are. Where did THAT money go? The actual hard construction costs of the two-wall enclosure at the Country Club was $315,000+. That is OVER $600 a square foot. Normal construction costs in Dade County should be $125 a square foot for that 520 foot enclosure. 125 X 520= $65,000. We paid $315,000. Where did that $250,000 in cost overruns and/or questionable payments go? Several other financial fiascos, overruns of TRIPLE the usual and customary costs, questionable bids, AND MORE are available for your response but I would be interested in your reply to these first.That's a start but here are MANY more examples to come. Thanks for the opportunity to detail the specifics of my objections to blatant ineptitude and/or mismanagement (or worse) by our City officials. NOBODY can be as consistently stupid, clueless, or inept (the choice is yours) as the City has been over the past three years or so. ITS IMPOSSIBLE.

This is in response to a poster who suggested they had rational responses to the multiple and repeated City boondoggles of just the past three years or so. I was hoping somebody would ask me for numbers to back up my claims and they finally did. Its a perfect oppurtunity to list each project and how much money disappeared from each one, over and above normal costs. I am NOT a construction expert (although I have some construction experience), so I consulted with a couple guys who each have over 25 years in the construction business and some other seasoned construction-related professionals. Apparently the normal Dade County new construction costs at $125 a square foot includes a healthy 25 % profit built into it for the contractor. Anything above that is icing on the cake. the City is consistently paying TRIPLE, QUADRUPLE, and up to SEVEN TIMES the actual costs for these projects. This can NO LONGER be tolerated !! Those responsible have to go ! NOW. A recall petition is being circulated around town. Stop the bleeding before we bleed to death.