URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — The City of Urbana is getting almost $3 million in a recent lawsuit against Stark Excavation for a 2014 construction project on Windsor Road.

Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin said this type of work is expected to last for decades, but that wasn’t the case.

“I’m very conscious about using public resources carefully and making sure we get the product that we paid for,” she said. “And in this case, we did not.”

Urbana was awarded $2.9 million for the upkeep of Windsor Road. Concrete started crumbling on the road after a project done by Stark Excavation 8 years ago. While it is a substantial amount of money for the mile-and-a-half stretch, Marlin said it’s not nearly enough to replace it.

“This is different. I mean, in that these cracks appeared in a brand new road and some places before it was even open to vehicle traffic,” she said.

Within months of wrapping up construction, more work was needed.

“We’re stuck with the road that’s there,” Marlin said. “But we’re going to have to be very diligent about patching the cracked ceiling joints, trying to keep moisture from infiltrating.”

Filing a lawsuit was not a decision the city made lightly.

“The contract was awarded to a company that has built many, many roads in the area before. And this one — as our attorney said at the end and closing arguments — this one went sideways.”

Mayor Marlin said it’s the taxpayers who would suffer the most for the job not being done correctly, and that they shouldn’t pay for what should have been done right the first time.

“We’re going to have to live with the product,” Marlin said. “It’s not as good as it should have been. But as I said, this judgment will help compensate for the increased costs of maintenance.”

Stark Excavation has been reached out to several times for comment. There is no response at this time.