April 5, 2024 |
Photo – Logo for Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel – Courtesy rmsandgravel.com
Saratoga has secured a contractor to perform the next leg of its water line replacement project.
During Tuesday’s Saratoga town council meeting, the board chose Cheyenne-based Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel to replace the water lines beneath River Street.
Public Works Director Emery Penner said the town received two bids for the next phase of its water line replacement project. Penner said Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel’s price was far lower than their competitor, Lewis and Lewis.
In 2019, Carbon County residents voted to create the 6th Penny Specific Purpose Tax to pay for needed county and municipal infrastructure improvements. Saratoga set aside 6th Penny Tax money to replace the out-of-date water mains under Spring Avenue and River Street.
In 2022, the town hired Lewis and Lewis, of Rock Springs, to dig up and replace the water lines beneath Spring Avenue. The job was expected to be completed by October 31st. During contract negotiations, Lewis and Lewis agreed to be charged liquidated damages, in the amount of $1,750, for every day the job went past Halloween.
Lewis and Lewis arrived in town several weeks late. That, combined with unexpected ground water caused the project to run past the completion date. In late October, representatives from Lewis and Lewis approached the town council to ask that the liquidated damages be paused while the contractor left town for the winter. The council voted to hold the company to the original contract.
Lewis and Lewis returned to town in early April 2023 and completed the job three months later. The liquidated damages assessed by the town were returned to the company, minus what the town spent to maintain the incomplete project over the winter.
The next phase of the project involves replacing the water lines under South River Street, from Spring Avenue south to Maple Avenue.
At Tuesday’s Saratoga town council meeting, Public Works Director Penner said Lewis and Lewis was asking for nearly four times as much money for mobilization and water control. Penner said he believes that Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel can complete the job for the bid amount.
Documents provided by the town show that Lewis and Lewis bid roughly $3,347,000 for the River Street Waterline Replacement Project. The Rock Springs-based contractor asked for $750,000 for mobilization and another $750,000 for dewatering. Back in 2022, both mobilization and dewatering were the primary cause of the Spring Avenue project’s delays.
Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel bid $1.78 million for the same job. In contrast to Lewis and Lewis, RMSG is charging the town $200,000 for mobilization and an additional $200,000 for dewatering—over $1 million less than for those two aspects of the job than Lewis and Lewis..
The Saratoga town council voted to award the River Street Waterline Replacement Project to Rocky Mountain Sand and Gravel. The contractor should begin work within the next two or three weeks.
Public Works Director Penner said the project is expected to be completed before winter.
