Bismarck City Attorney Charlie Whitman gave realistic advice to city commissioners in September, telling them that it could be months before insurance companies came to a settled position on who will pay for the damage done to a downtown parking ramp owned by the city and run by the Bismarck Parking Authority.

Insurance companies shouldn't be given the latitude of letting the matter drag on and on. Throw in a contractor, a subcontractor and various consultants and it's a push-me-pull-you struggle that needs something to happen.

The city commission should give the insurance companies involved a deadline - sooner than later - to come to an agreement.

If they seem slow or reluctant or can't agree, the city should direct that repairs continue as quickly as possible using city money until completion. The city should demand payment in full from the insurance companies to recover the costs of repairing the damage done by construction contractors. If that isn't forthcoming, the city should take legal action.

A court could decide the fact and degrees of responsibility and blame between the contractor and subcontractor. It was the subcontractor that cut through structural tendons in the concrete decking in preparation for the removal of big concrete planters on the ramp's roof.

It's costing the Bismarck Parking Authority money in lost revenue for daily and weekly parking fees, with the top three of the Galleria's seven levels closed.

A lawsuit should include the city's demand of compensation for lost revenue.

While a lawsuit takes time, it's not the deliberate calendar-freezing pace of two opposing insurance companies trying to put off as long as can be the painful moment of having to pay out claim money, while splitting each hair lengthwise eight times in asserting, denying and negotiating blame.

Winter is the season of covered parking having the most value to drivers in North Dakota. It certainly would be good to have available the most number of spaces the Galleria offers.

It should have been a relatively straightforward $250,000 project to correct a water problem originating on the roof of a concrete structure. The removal of the planters is nearly accomplished.

The construction project is in better shape than the mess it has created. The commission can take decisive action and build momentum toward a resolution.