West Windsor officials are re-bidding the proposal for the expansion project at the senior center in hopes the bids will come back within budget. Bids will open on Thursday, November 29.##M:[more]##
This is the second time the township is going out to bid for the project. The project’s architect had estimated a construction cost of $1.5 million, but the lowest bid in August, submitted by BurMarc Construction, was $2.5 million. Two other bids were also submitted on in August – $2.97 million from Structural Concepts, and $3.65 million from MJJ Construction. Township Council voted to reject all bids in September.
The bids came in high because prices in almost every category were 40 to 50 percent higher than the amounts estimated. They include costs for materials, plumbing, concrete, flooring, and framing.
While the township is giving the original proposal a second chance, if it receives bids that are still too high, officials have said they will move to a phased approach. Business Administrator Chris Marion said officials made “minor modifications having to do with code-related issues” before sending the bid specs out again.
“Based on statewide averages, we feel we should be within the target, so we will try again to see what other contractors would be able to come up with,” said Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh.
At the same time, however, township officials already have prepared for the phased approach. Officials had said the first phase would include bathrooms, renovations to the existing building, and additional storage space.
The second phase would include the construction of a new larger activity room, more classroom space, and a connector to the existing building.
The National Institute of Senior Centers reaccredited the senior center in September.It is one of only 145 accredited centers in the United States, and one of only two in the state. Hsueh said the senior center received very high marks from the review committee members.
Hsueh said he wants the project to be successful because he wants the township to continue to offer the best services to its growing senior population. “I want to keep up with that reputation and be able to serve more people.”
