Safety path repair program contract awarded

Bloomfield Township trustees unanimously approved a recommendation to award a 2020 safety path repair program contract to JB Contractors on Monday, August 10, for repair and maintenance of the township's safety paths, bridges and retaining walls. The 2020 safety path repair program contract bid is for $157,955, and will allow for up to $200,000 to be expended for the safety path repair program. Olivia Olsztyn-Budry, director of Bloomfield Township’s Engineering and Environmental Services Department (EESD), said that JB Contractors, which was also rewarded the 2019 contract, was the lowest of the five bids for the repair work. In previous years, the safety path repair division was included as part of the new construction program for the township, but this year it was decided to make it a separate project so that repairs can be responded to more quickly, with the goal being to have one contractor whose only job is to do repairs of the safety path system. “The goal is to make it more efficient and quicker so we can address issues as they arise on a more efficient basis,” Olsztyn-Budry said. This year, EESD also asked bidders to provide unit prices for a potential second and third year contract extension. JB Contractors was the lowest bidder for that as well. Those bid amounts were strictly estimates. A second motion was passed unanimously to accept the pricing from JB Contractors for years two and three, which would make them the repair company of record for future repairs, based on their ability to service this year's repairs, and at the discretion of the engineering department. Olsztyn-Budry said that the second motion isn’t promising JB Contractors a dollar amount, but it did lock in the pricing for 2021 and 2022. She said it will also save time so the township doesn’t have to go out to receive bids again, which takes about three weeks. If JB Contractors performs satisfactorily, the township can continue the project and the contract by way of a change order each year that matches the budget approved by the board. The township has over 72 miles of safety paths and each year the repair program does maintenance and repairs on the paths, including fixing cracked or settled areas of the paths as well as repairs on fencing and retaining walls. This year, the township had two car accidents that affected the safety paths. One damaged a retaining wall on Adams Road; the second damaged a safety path bridge on Lahser Road. The proposal estimated repairs on those at $56,000 and $10,000, respectively. Those are not included in the repair bid from JB Contractors and the township is currently working with insurance agencies to regain some of the repair expenses. At the November board of trustees meeting, the original estimate for 2020 was $100,000 for safety path repairs and $100,000 for retaining walls repairs. The estimated amount for this year is now above that original estimate.