Longview port delays berth-building contract for second time

Longview port delays berth-building contract for second time A Portland firm set to build the berth for a $100 million grain terminal at the Port of Longview agreed to give port officials another two months to hammer out an official agreement over the deal.
   The port's previous 60-day extension with Advanced American Construction expired on Monday but the latest extension will give port officials until Feb. 8 to finalize the deal. AAC won the bidding process to build the berth with a low bid of $6.23 million.
   Port officials have said that details of the deal are taking longer than expected to finalize and that no serious issues have led to the delays. If construction on the Berth 9 project does not begin before Feb. 28, AAC will have to wait until next November to start work due to calendar restrictions on in-water construction.
   The berth portion needs to be completed before work on the proposed $100 million grain terminal set for the site can proceed.
   Port officials, while acknowledging that they could take until February, said they are hopeful a deal will be finalized by the end of this year.