PORTLAND — A Portland city administrator is on leave after an audit showed elaborate design choices and insufficient oversight were responsible for the skyrocketing costs of a new office building.
The Oregonian reports an audit released Wednesday shows Bureau of Environmental Services director Dean Marriot failed to update the city on the Columbia Building’s growing costs, despite multiple opportunities to do so.
The cost overruns, which tripled the final price to $11.5 million, became public in April.
Marriott says in a written response that the price grew because of site improvements not in the original scope. He also says the original price estimate didn’t account for interest or overhead expenses.
The project also raised concerns about conflicts of interest: The same manager responsible for overseeing spending was responsible for project work.