BID?LOWER?THAN?EXPECTED:

THREE MORE STREET

PROJECTS MAY BE ADDED

By John Speer

Editor

jspeer@tamatoledonews.com

A bid much lower than projected by the city’s engineering firm will make the long-sought rebuilding of East 5th Street from State Street to near Business Highway 30 as a truck route a reality. Tama City Council members voted 4-0 Tuesday night, May 2, to accept the low bid of Vieth Construction Corp., Cedar Falls, totaling $856,100.

Voting in favor of the contract were council members Robert Tyynismaa, Aaron Haughey, Doug Ray and Kenny McAdoo. Tynissmaa served as Mayor Pro Tem in the absence of Mayor Mike Carnahan.

Discussions by the Tama City Council of the project go back at least as far as 2012.

A timeline for the work is still to be decided with additional bidding for the work from State to Oswego to be opened on June 20. That portion of the project is being paid for by $300,000 in federal funds with the city responsible to pay for an additional $170,000 in matching money. It is hoped this project will be bid along with an East Ross Street project in Toledo which is also partially federally funded.

The federal money is from farm-to-market funds which may have dried up for the future according to Marty Wymore, Region 6 executive director, who advises area governments on work.

Kelli Scott, Snyder and Associates, Cedar Rapids, engineer for the project, said Monday night, the bid was indeed much lower than her firm’s estimate of about $1.3 million.

Other bidders were Manatt’s- $899,004; Absolute Concrete- $927,512; and Cons-Truct- $1,041,778.

Tama Street Superintendent Stuart Eisentrager recommended council members also consider paving one block of Oswego Street from 5th Street to 4th Street. He said some trucks bound for Werner’s Elevator currently use this street which is gravel. Estimated cost by Snyder and Associates is $150,000.

And, milling and overlay for the block of Harding Street between 9th and 10th at an estimated cost of $27,000 plus a short eastern section of 5th Street from east of the Lincoln Highway Bridge to Business 30 at an estimated cost of $18,500.