A Fort Wayne construction company is refusing to repay more than $5 million to INDOT over asphalt issues, claiming the agency tested its mixture 72 times during road construction.
INDOT sent a letter to Brooks Construction last month demanding a complete re-do of roadwork or a reimbursement of $5.1 million IDOT paid for asphalt for a 3-mile stretch of State Road 25 in Cass County built by the company.
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Pictures from INDOT show cracks in the road nearly 3 inches wide. The road was built just three years ago, according to INDOT, and was expected to last 20 years.
On Friday, Brooks Construction executive vice president John Brooks released a statement saying the company would not comply with INDOT's demands:
"As a family-owned business building projects in Indiana for more than 100 years, we are committed to working with INDOT to resolve the state's widespread pavement issues. We will not, however, accept legal responsibility for an industry problem caused by INDOT's specifications and quality assurance program. The fact is, INDOT conducted 72 tests on our asphalt mix at the time of SR 25 construction, and all were approved. We complied with all INDOT specifications and Brooks Construction was paid in full for the work, and also earned bonuses totaling more than $18,000 for an asphalt mix that exceeded requirements."
In a letter to INDOT, Brooks Construction pointed out the agency signed a statement to the National Asphalt Pavement Association verifying the pavement was of "exemplary quality."
Brooks said the demands stem from "technically flawed post-completion forensic testing" performed by INDOT in 2014 and 2015 that were not part of the company's contract with INDOT.
An INDOT spokesman said the agency planned to deliver a letter to Brooks Construction's insurance company in an effort to resolve the matter.
