Lake dredging bids well under $2 million
EVANSVILLE
The dredging of Lake Leota could cost much less than the $2 million that voters approved spending last week.
Officials opened the contractor bids for the project Monday, revealing the lowest bidder as Integrity Grading & Excavating at $885,069. At its special meeting Monday night, the public works committee recommended the city council award the contract to Integrity, committee chair and council president Mason Braunschweig said.
“Realistically, (it’s) great numbers for the city. Incredible,” he said.
Six contractors bid for the project, ranging up to about $1.5 million. The city council will award a bid at its meeting at 6:30 p.m. tonight at city hall, 31 S. Madison St., Evansville.
The bids also include a contingency cost to truck lake bed material off site, Braunschweig said. While the plan calls for disposing the 200,000 cubic yards of lake bed on adjoining property, some of the weed material or rock may need to be hauled elsewhere if the contractor can’t dispose of it in the lake by moving the rock or burning the material, he said.
Integrity’s bid for that portion is $7.10 per cubic yard. If all of the estimated 13,000 cubic yards of weed material had to be transported off-site, it would add $92,300 to Integrity’s bid.
Nov 12, 2008 at 5:35 a.m.
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Gilly if you are correct, the city of evansville is out of line. Because that is not what was approved. They hired the lowest bidding contractor last night, under a million. That amount would add very little to the taxes. If they try to shove that box culvert down our throats with this loan, there will be a recall. AS that is not what is approved. They need to wait until they can work the rest into the budget like the rest of us. That is fishy..
Nov 11, 2008 at 8:53 p.m.
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I'm sure S.O.L.E. has already planned to spend the extra $1.2 million ("saved") on something else the taxpayers can't afford.
Bring in the wind turbines and lets make the lake pay for itself!!!!!
Nov 11, 2008 at 7:32 p.m.
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I got a boat and a shovel, I was too late to submit my bid of $200,000. I can start next summer. :)
Nov 11, 2008 at 6:30 p.m.
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Qualified engineering study and companies looking to keep their payroll going are two different things. It looks and sounds like supply and demand is helping Evansville’s budget this time around as the equipment isn’t being used right now to build too many new roads and companies want to keep their skilled labor employed. I don't see anything fishy or strange about that.
Nov 11, 2008 at 5:29 p.m.
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then why at the fiance meeting are they asking for MORE than the 2 million? The meeting was just held this week. Something strange going on in eville. No surprise there.
Nov 11, 2008 at 4:54 p.m.
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I would call that a surprisingly low bid, to the point that I would want to examine the proposal very carefully. Wasn't the original referendum amount based on a qualified engineering study?
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