Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
City awards contract for library
The groundbreaking is next month, but heavy construction won't begin until January.
By Tamara El- Khoury
Published October 20, 2006
OLDSMAR - The groundbreaking for the new library is next month and the mayor has requested gold shovels. "I just want it built before I leave," said Mayor Jerry Beverland, whose term expires just months after construction will begin. The City Council on Tuesday awarded a $4.9-million contract to Oldsmar-based Honors Contractors, Inc., to build the new library on the southeast corner of St. Petersburg Drive and Dartmouth Avenue. The company also built the city's Cypress Forest Park Recreation Center. The new library will replace the one on State Street in the city's historic bank building. Awarding a contract has taken longer than anticipated for the city, which received just one bid in July for $5.9-million. At the time, the city had budgeted $3.2-million for the project. The City Council rejected that bid, modified the contract and re-advertised. Council members also added $1.75-million to the library budget by postponing several projects budgeted for the upcoming fiscal year. This time, they received seven bids. A contract will be signed within a week, said John Mulvihill, director of public works. The groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for 4 p.m. Nov. 14, but residents won't notice heavy construction until January. The project is expected to be completed within a year. The city asked for separate bids on some parts of the project, and accepted Honors Contractors' bids on three of the optional items - acoustical wall panels, cast stone plinth finish on the building exterior and flexible sheet roofing. City staff recommended that the buildout of the library's cafe area can be included in a lease agreement with a future vendor. The staff report also said that integrally colored concrete sidewalks bid estimate of $49,842 by Honors were not necessary for the project. Mulvihill, however, said the sidewalks were the last part of the project, and if there is any money left at the end, the colored sidewalks are something the city may consider doing. Tamara El-Khoury can be reached at (727) 445-4181 or tel-khoury@sptimes.com.
[Last modified October 19, 2006, 23:22:10]
Share your thoughts on this story
|
News
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Print
Email story
Comment
Email editor
