The Township Council has awarded a $1,”185,”000 contract for the first phase of expansion construction at the township’s senior center.##M:[more]##
The township received six bids for the project, after the expansion project was redesigned into phases and re-bid for a third time because the two previous rounds of bids came in higher than anticipated.
The first phase of construction will include renovations to the existing building, five additional classroom or meeting rooms, bathrooms, and more storage space. The lowest bid came from Tri-Form Construction Inc. of Metuchen with a base bid of $1,”086,”000. The council unanimously voted to award the contract on June 23. The contract also includes an alternate option for a solar panel system on the addition, costing $97,”900. Funds available for the project comes from the 2005, 2006, and 2007 capital budgets, Business Administrator Chris Marion said.
Phase 2, which would probably not begin until at least 2010, would include construction of a larger activity room, additional classrooms, and additional storage space and basement.
Before the vote, Bob Lowe, who is the chairman of the advisory board for the senior center and the Friends of West Windsor Senior Citizens, said he strongly urged council’s support of the project. “There is a real need,” he said. “We simply do not have the room over there to do what we want to do or are capable of doing, or what we’ve been asked to do. This very room is used twice a month for a language class. Off site is not good because it does not have staff supervision, it lacks coordination, and many of our members go to the senior center for two or more activities. If one is someplace else, they lose the second.”
