Welcome to the Business Journal Archives
Search for articles below, or continue to the all new BusinessJournalDaily.com now.
Search
First Bids Opened for Work on Convocation Center
By Dan O'BrienYOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- If bid figures hold, the effort to build a new convocation center in downtown Youngstown is already well under budget.Three area contractors submitted proposals Wednesday that fall $1 million below the costs projected for the first construction phase of the Youngstown convocation center.Bids were opened at noon yesterday in City Council chambers for contracts involving preliminary excavation and utility work. No out-of-town companies submitted proposals, suggesting that local contractors are well positioned to win a fair share of business as work begins on the $41 million center.The lowest overall bid of $1,337,114 was submitted by Marucci & Gaffney Excavating Co., Youngstown. Second lowest was $1,349,800, submitted by Soda Construction Co. of Niles.Dallas-based Hunt Construction, the project's construction manager, thought total costs would amount to $2,347,000. Even the highest overall bid of $1,356,000, submitted by A.P. O'Horo Co., Liberty, was nearly $1 million under the construction manager's projection.However, the bid package was structured in two parts, allowing contractors to bid separately on the excavation and utility portions. Therefore, the city may opt to award the work to two different contractors instead of accepting the overall lowest bid, said Carmen Conglose, deputy director of public works.Future bid packages will probably be large enough to accommodate two or three contractors, he elaborated. "We're glad to see local companies being responsive," Conglose commented. The lowest proposal for the excavation portion came from A.P. O'Horo, which bid $857,000. Second lowest was Soda at $900,000, and third was Marucci at $971,576. Hunt Construction put its excavation costs at $1.6 million.The excavation portion involves digging, grading and demolishing the construction site at Walnut and Front streets downtown, reported Mike Perry, project manager for Hunt Construction. Demolition, he clarified, will be limited to an old retaining wall at the site and not buildings, which will fall under a separate contract yet to be awarded.A old service station and the former Goodyear building on Front Street are targeted for demolition to make room for the center. Site work includes grading for the arena's foundation and adjacent parking lots, Perry said. The work will proceed three months or so before other contractors begin their work. Excavation should begin within a week after a contract is awarded, he said.A second part calls for the installation of water lines, sewer lines, catch basins and electrical conduits at the site, Perry said. Marucci submitted a low bid of $365,538 for the utility portion. Soda Construction provided the second lowest estimate at $450,000 and O'Horo was third at $543,000. Hunt projected the costs for this phase at $725,000."We got some really great [bid] numbers," Perry said, noting the competitive nature of the project will yield the best deal for the city and was the main reason why bids came in so low. Between 50 and 70 workers could soon be on site as a result of the initial contract.At least eight more bid packages are expected to be advertised, said K. Anthony Hayek, architect for MS Consultants, Youngstown, which has worked with the city since the beginning of the project. Bids for underslab, mechanical, electrical and plumbing work for the center's foundation are being accepted, Perry added. Those bids are scheduled to be opened at noon July 15. Officials broke ground for the long-awaited center June 22, heralding the project as a watershed for the revitalization of downtown Youngstown.Phoenix-based Global Entertainment Corp., the company the city chose to develop and market the convocation center, has promised to bring a minor-league hockey franchise to the center and schedule a variety of events that would keep the arena busy throughout the year.A sales expo sponsored by Global Entertainment is set for July 22, site to be announced.The bulk of funding for the center comes from a $26.8 million federal grant secured by former congressman James A. Traficant Jr., serving an eight-year sentence in federal prison for bribery and racketeering. Global will put up the balance except for a $5 million grant the city expects to receive from the Ohio Sports Facilities Commission.Contact Dan O'Brien at [email protected]"