If the town accepts the low bid for the Main Street parking lot project, both the project engineering and project construction costs would be covered by the $500,000 Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grant the town already received.

The project is planned for the site of the former police station building, now demolished, at 225 Main Street. As envisioned, the project would proceed in two phases. Completion of the second phase would depend on receipt of a second STEAP grant, likely of a lower amount.

For this first phase of the project, the main focus is construction of a new public parking lot to serve patrons of Main Street’s businesses and of The Kate cultural arts center across the street. Planned are 29 regular parking spaces and two handicapped parking spaces.

The project’s later second phase would include work to further develop the linear park on town-owned land connecting Main Street to Lynde Street. This phase would add landscaping and other amenities.

This bidding round was to seek bids from contractors for phase one of the project.

To date, First Selectman Carl Fortuna, Jr., estimates that the town has spent between $35,000 and $40,000 for the town engineer to prepare the engineering drawings and documents to bid the work.

Contractor bids for Phase One of the Main Street Connection Park project were due to the first selectman’s office by July 1. Five bids had been received by the deadline.

Per the town’s project bid documents, each submission had to include one base price for all of the work and also deduct prices for five tasks. If any of the deductions were accepted by the town, the bidder’s base price would be reduced by the amount corresponding to the deduction. These are referred to as deductive alternates in the bid materials.

The deductive alternative tasks that, if not done, would reduce bidders’ base bid prices were: 1. Delete all picnic and game tables, 2. Delete all Type 1 benches, 3. Delete stone planter, 4. Delete timber guide rail and posts along the north side of the project site, and 5. Delete all shade benches.

Of the five bids received from contracting firms, the lowest base price submitted was from TradeMark Contractors, LLC, at $486, 124. If all five deductions from the base price were taken, the firm’s new adjusted bid for the project would be $468,509.

The next lowest bid was submitted by LaRosa Earth Group, LLC, at $695,000. After the five deductions are taken, this firm’s bid price drops to $642,500.

“We are now in our due diligence phase, making sure that the low-bid contractor understands the scope of work, and checking references,” said Fortuna. “If the low bid is acceptable, the town would be very close to being able to complete this project with just the $500,000 in STEAP grant funds.”

Fortuna said he is hopeful that construction to complete the first phase of this Main Street project could be completed during the current construction season.