Renovations to Fountain Square in downtown Evanston are scheduled to be delayed through the end of December, Dave Stoneback, the public works director, announced Monday.

The square, which has been under construction since April 2017, was slated to be completed by Sept. 30, after a number of delays. Now, Stoneback said at a city meeting, there are potential leaks in pipes attached to the fountain itself.

Stoneback said Monday that the contractor for the project, Cophenhaver Construction, did not pressure test underground piping attached to the fountain before covering up the work.

Now, the city has hired a company that will line the pipes to repair the damage. Stoneback said Copenhaver is taking on the costs for the damages and that repairs are scheduled to be completed next week.

In addition to the piping issues, a number of glass panels designated for the veterans memorial at Fountain Square were damaged during transport, and replacements have been delivered, said Lara Biggs, Evanston’s capital planning bureau chief. Installation will still be delayed by another two to three weeks.

Because of all the delays and damages, Stoneback said, the city will be paying less overall for the project than the original estimates. This means that there is money available to replace a sidewalk on Sherman Avenue that presents a “tripping hazard” and resurface the street in that block of Sherman, Stoneback said.

Biggs said that if the pipe repairs are completed on schedule, startup and testing of the fountain and its software systems will happen during August and September.

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