Misplaced bid opened for dome demolition

VALPARAISO | A mislabeled envelope might end up being the low bid for the demolition of the former Natural Ovens Bakery dome.

The city's Board of Public Works and Safety held a special meeting Wednesday to accept the bid from Dore & Associates Contracting Inc., of Bay City, Mich. The company's base bid for demolition of the dome was $483,500, which is about $150,000 less than the G. E. Marshall bid that previously was considered the low bid.

The Dore bid packet arrived at city hall Thursday, a day before the deadline to submit bids, but the Fed Ex envelop was addressed to the city's Redevelopment Commission. So, it was forwarded to that office, Clerk-Treasurer Sharon Swihart said. The envelope was not opened until later. The three other bids, including Marshall's, were opened at the board's regular meeting Friday.

The bids also contained amounts for four alternatives that involved removing the concrete from the parking area and driveways, crushing all the concrete except that from the dome and hauling it to an industrial site near the airport water treatment plant, crushing the parking and driveway concrete and hauling it to the industrial site, and removing the polyethylene cover from the dome, crushing the concrete and hauling it to the industrial site.

G. E. Marshall's bid for the latter was $26,140 while Dore's was $248,100.

Ross Marshall, of G.E. Marshall, was at Wednesday's meeting and acknowledged the Dore bid was lower "if you want to give the job to a company 300 miles away." Representatives from the Foundation for Fair Contracting also were at the meeting asking for information about the bids.

The bids are being reviewed by consultant John Blosky, of Amereco Inc., and a recommendation will be presented to the board of works at the Oct. 10 meeting. The redevelopment commission is funding the demolition, but budgeted only $350,000. A request for additional money will be presented to the commission at its meeting Wednesday.

The dome was deeded to the city by the county earlier this year after several attempts to sell it for back taxes could find no bidders. Delinquent taxes on the property exceeded the value of the dome. The city plans to redevelop the site, and any money it receives will go toward covering the demolition. Any left over will be split with the city receiving 70 percent and the county 30 percent.

View original post here:
Misplaced bid opened for dome demolition