Construction Begins at Other Beach Lot

County, Gonzales Construction miss January and February Deadlines. Supervisor Yaroslavsky tells Post that County will make pre-summer deadline.

L.A. County’s construction at Will Rogers State Beach expanded last week, when tractors tore up concrete from the beachfront parking lot at PCH and West Channel Road. That easternmost lot for Will Rogers parking is part of the county’s $12-million project to replace aging infrastructure along the beach from Chautauqua Boulevard to Coastline Drive. Crews working for Gonzales Construction, Inc., which was awarded the project in November 2005, will install new aluminum railings and asphalt to upgrade the lot, according to Mike Patel, one of the county’s project managers overseeing construction. This lot, along with the entire beach project, is scheduled for completion in May. But Gonzales Construction has missed all of its deadlines this year. On March 2, the county expected ‘substantial completion’ of the entire project, which includes the renovation of nearly 1,800 parking spaces, concession stands, public restrooms and the L.A. County Lifeguard’s headquarters. None of these individual projects, including ones originally set for January completion, has yet been finished. Early on, construction was delayed for four months after a county planning error. Recently, county officials have blamed wet weather for the failure of Gonzales’ crews to meet the January deadline (which became an unmet February deadline) for the Lifeguard headquarters and the long parking lot directly east of Temescal Canyon Road. However, the National Weather Service reported this week that Los Angeles is facing its ‘driest’ year in recorded history. Gonzales, which is based in Tarzana, has rejected repeated interview offers from the Palisadian-Post. On Tuesday afternoon, a Gonzales employee said that no one from the company is allowed to speak about the project. County officials have said that they will impose penalties on the company if does not meet the final deadline. The Temescal’s eastern lot has been closed to the public since December 2005. If crews do not meet the May deadline there, public access to the beach will again be limited during the busy summer season’and the county will lose $7 per car in daily parking revenue. Despite significant delays, county officials say that the total cost of the project has not changed. ‘I spoke to our people two weeks ago, and I think it’s going to get done [by the May deadline],’ said LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who acknowledged to the Post on Tuesday that the project has taken a long time. ———- Reporting by Staff Writer Max Taves. To contact, e-mail reporter@palipost.com or call (310) 454-1321 ext. 28.