Hoffman Estates spends $180,000 on Sears Centre repair

Hoffman Estates officials spent $180,000 this summer to correct the settlement of the Sears Centre Arena's foundation under the main entrance.

Trustees authorized the last $30,000 Monday night after the emergency project was already completed.

"It was work that needed to be done, and I'm glad we did it when we did," said Mark Koplin, the village's director of development services.

Though the foundation problem with six underground columns that needed to be raised was a progression of the arena's original construction 11 years ago, neither the private owner of that time nor the contractor it used could be held financially responsible for the repair, Koplin said.

That's because when the village took over the then-failing arena from Ryan Cos. in December 2009, it accepted the facility on an as-is basis in exchange for other concessions and final services from the departing firm, he added.

When asked whether foundation problem was a result of particularly poor construction, Koplin declined to comment.

The direction water flowed from a leak in the roof revealed the foundation problem, he said.

During the repair work, the glass curtain wall of the front entrance was temporarily removed to avoid damage.

After an initial cost estimate of $275,000 in May, the village staff was able to lower it to $150,000 before village board members authorized the cost.

But it was during the actual work this summer that unforeseen problems added $30,000 to the bill.

Sears Centre management already paid the contractors the additional money, and Monday's vote allows the village to reimburse that cost.

The repair resulted in no loss of events at the Sears Centre due to a two-week window of low activity, Koplin said.