Bridge bid high, again
09/07/05
By Diane Wagner, Rome News-Tribune Staff Writer
Rome officials were stunned Tuesday at the single, over-budget bid received for construction of a proposed pedestrian bridge across the Oostanaula River.
Further investigation is planned, but several baffled staffers suggested that contractors could be gearing up for work in the hurricane-devastated parts of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.
“It’s possible,” City Manager John Bennett said. “Bridge-building is a very specialized area, and very regional.”
The sole bid of $4.65 million came from Gilberet Southern Corp. of Peachtree City. Rome leaders had been expecting a price as high as $2.5 million and were scrambling to find money to add to a $1.2 million Georgia Department of Transportation grant.
“As is very obvious, this is way over budget,” said Bill Gilliland, Rome’s purchasing director. “The city has the option of trying to fund the project or rejecting the bid, and a decision should be made within 30 days.”
The proposed bridge would connect The Forum parking lot to West Third Street. It is cited as a necessary component of the pending plan to redevelop West Third Street as a multi-use district with residences, shops and green space.
Bennett said it is too soon to gauge the effect of the apparent lack of contractor-interest in the bridge project.
“We still have the DOT money,” he said. “We’ll certainly look at all the other options we might have in trying to build a bridge.”
Gilliland said he notified all 14 of the qualified bridge-builders listed with the state, and 10 of the companies requested specification packets. The bid-opening, originally scheduled for Aug. 25, was reset to Tuesday after the state DOT revised its specifications and several expected bidders asked for extensions to finalize their offers.
The pedestrian bridge has been put out for bid four times since the grant was awarded in 1999, but DOT revisions and high prices have stalled the project. The DOT pulled the grant in March, but David Doss, state transportation chairman and a former Floyd County commissioner, said he would reinstate it if the West Third Street project moves forward.
By Diane Wagner, Rome News-Tribune Staff Writer
Rome officials were stunned Tuesday at the single, over-budget bid received for construction of a proposed pedestrian bridge across the Oostanaula River.
Further investigation is planned, but several baffled staffers suggested that contractors could be gearing up for work in the hurricane-devastated parts of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.
“It’s possible,” City Manager John Bennett said. “Bridge-building is a very specialized area, and very regional.”
The sole bid of $4.65 million came from Gilberet Southern Corp. of Peachtree City. Rome leaders had been expecting a price as high as $2.5 million and were scrambling to find money to add to a $1.2 million Georgia Department of Transportation grant.
“As is very obvious, this is way over budget,” said Bill Gilliland, Rome’s purchasing director. “The city has the option of trying to fund the project or rejecting the bid, and a decision should be made within 30 days.”
The proposed bridge would connect The Forum parking lot to West Third Street. It is cited as a necessary component of the pending plan to redevelop West Third Street as a multi-use district with residences, shops and green space.
Bennett said it is too soon to gauge the effect of the apparent lack of contractor-interest in the bridge project.
“We still have the DOT money,” he said. “We’ll certainly look at all the other options we might have in trying to build a bridge.”
Gilliland said he notified all 14 of the qualified bridge-builders listed with the state, and 10 of the companies requested specification packets. The bid-opening, originally scheduled for Aug. 25, was reset to Tuesday after the state DOT revised its specifications and several expected bidders asked for extensions to finalize their offers.
The pedestrian bridge has been put out for bid four times since the grant was awarded in 1999, but DOT revisions and high prices have stalled the project. The DOT pulled the grant in March, but David Doss, state transportation chairman and a former Floyd County commissioner, said he would reinstate it if the West Third Street project moves forward.
posted by Webmaster at 9/07/2005 07:34:00 AM
1 Comments:
I'm still waiting to hear WHY we need this bridge in the first place. People around here are too lazy to park on Broad Street to walk to the forum...what makes anyone think they'll be willing to walk even further? Seems like a waste of money to me.
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