Bids Up

Harrison Square bids surpass city estimates
Link (JG)

"The city took bids for three projects for the downtown development, and all were more than projected. The lowest bid for electrical work was $1.1 million more than the city’s estimate.

Greg Leatherman, the city’s director of redevelopment, said he couldn’t explain why the bids were high and the city would need to examine the contractors’ information.

The city opened bids for electrical work, elevators and plumbing, mechanical and sheet metal. L.A. Electric, of Fort Wayne, was the apparent low bidder for the electrical work at $3.2 million, but the city’s engineering estimate for the project was $2.04 million."

[...]

"The city sometimes rejects bids that are too high, but Leatherman said he was unsure whether that would be necessary. He said the estimate may have to be examined to see whether it was too low. The contract had three other bidders, with two of them comparably priced to L.A. Electric.

The two other contracts were closer to the city’s estimates. A. Hattersley and Sons Inc., of Fort Wayne, was the apparent low bidder for the plumbing, mechanical and sheet metal contract. The company bid $2.9 million for a project estimated to cost $2.8 million.

Schindler, of Indianapolis, was the lone bidder for the elevator contract, charging $215,000 for work estimated to cost $171,400."

[...]

"The Fort Wayne Redevelopment Commission will likely meet next week to approve the bids. Leatherman said the city will accept bids for the final eight contracts March 12. He said those are mostly smaller contracts, such as drywall and woodworking."

Harrison bids exceed city estimates
But city official says most bids are still coming in under budget.
Link (NS)

"Greg Leatherman, the city’s deputy director for community development, said the contracts — all for the $30 million baseball stadium slated to open in 2009 — would be awarded sometime next week."

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"After talking with Barry Real Estate, an Atlanta-based developer on the project, Leatherman said at least two items in the city’s request for bids shouldn’t have been included. He said the stadium’s architect had asked for deluxe fixtures where regular fixtures would work fine. Also, while the stadium needs a generator should the power goes out, the bids included electricity for the stadium’s stormwater pumping system. Leatherman said the pumps should not have been included. Eliminating those items, he estimated, would decrease the bids by half a million dollars."