Hopes that Town Hall renovations will begin on schedule in April got a boost this week when subcontractor bids were opened on March 3. Town Administrator Tim Bragan told the Board of Selectmen Tuesday night that more than 30 bids for the various trades had been submitted. Some were under the latest cost estimates for the project and some were over, but overall, Bragan said, the bid results looked “promising.”
More bids than last time
The number of subcontractor bids this time was much higher than the number received in 2013 for the original project. “To put it in perspective, we opened the subcontractor bids in 20 minutes last time,” said Bragan. “This time, it took 45 minutes.” The bids represented 10 different trades, but they were not spread equally among those trades. There were five electrical bids, for instance, but only one bid for the lift. Town Hall Construction Committee Chairman Rick Maiore said that the bid for the lift was under the $70,000 estimate by about $25,000. Maiore added that the bottom line is that the latest cost estimates are “pretty much right on target,” and that more importantly, the number of bids shows that contractors may be hungrier for work than they were in 2013.
More general contractors than last time?
Maiore said that more general contractors might submit bids this time as well. In 2013, only two firms submitted bids. This time, three general contractors have already filed subcontractor bids (which are valid only if the general contractor is chosen for the job), and another three or four general contractors have requested the bid documents. General contractor bids will be opened March 17, and the project is slated to begin April 20.
