Denver auditor Tim O’Brien plans a fresh review of a large portion of Denver International Airport’s $2.1 billion expansion after a follow-up of a 2023 audit found persistent oversight problems.
“I’m concerned,” O’Brien said. “What we are recommending goes beyond just documentation. The whole procurement of contracts and subcontracts needs to be open and fair and competitive.”
DIA officials on Tuesday said they aren’t considering any changes.
“The airport remains confident that it has adequate controls in place to ensure proper oversight of its projects,” airport officials said in an emailed response to Denver Post questions.
Launched in 2018, DIA’s expansion was budgeted to cost up to $770 million and be done within five years. As 2025 begins, airport officials estimate the total costs at $2.1 billion for an expanded project and say work reconstructing the Great Hall “will be substantially complete by the end of 2027, ahead of the original schedule of mid-summer 2028.”
O’Brien challenged that claim.
“Is it on time? Is it under budget? If you go with the revised time frame and the revised budget, maybe they can say that. If you start with the original time frame and budget, they cannot say that,” he said.
A first audit completed in 2023 made 10 recommendations. DIA officials rejected seven and agreed to abide by three.
A follow-up audit scheduled for presentation to city officials on Jan. 16 credits DIA with improvement but points to problems. It found continued deficiencies in DIA’s oversight of contractors and the subcontractors they hire.
The work relies on a prime contract with Hensel Phelps. Hensel Phelps has entered into 380 subcontracts so far, including 163 for upcoming “phase 3” work, according to DIA information provided to The Denver Post.
Airport officials said they scrutinized subcontracting, including reviews of bid packages and all contract documents. They disputed the auditor’s contentions that at least three bids must be received and that the lowest-cost, most responsive qualified bidder must be selected.
“A minimum of three bids is not required by industry best practices or this contract,” and “it is the contractor’s risk if the subcontractor can’t perform and responsibility to manage them,” DIA officials said.
The airport opened in 1995 – 16 months late and over budget at $4.8 billion — with a capacity for handling 50 million travelers. DIA officials estimated they’d handle 82 million travelers last year and plan on 120 million by 2045.
The next audit will focus on another airport project O’Brien didn’t specify and DIA’s $1.2 billion “phase 3” Great Hall reconstruction, he said.
Funds for DIA’s overhaul come from aeronautical revenues, such as landing gate fees from airlines, and non-aeronautical revenues such as money from food concessions and parking – “public dollars any way you look at it,” he said. “This airport is so important to Denver, Colorado, and the Rocky Mountain region — a huge economic generator. We all want to see it continue to be that and go forward in an economical and efficient manner in service to the public.”
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