ADDISON ? A nearly $2.3 million bid to construct a pedestrian bridge over M-24 in downtown Oxford and surface 12.2 miles of non-motorized trail was accepted last week by the Polly Ann Trailway Management Council (PATMC) and Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC).
‘They are targeting Aug. 1 as the starting date for construction,? said project manager Larry Obrecht, of Lake Orion, who also manages Oakland County’s Animal Control Division. It’s anticipated construction will conclude by the end of December.
On July 13, the trail council voted 7-1 to request the RCOC accept the low construction bid of $2,283,324 from the Anlaan Corporation, of Ferrysburg, Michigan. The next day the road commission’s three-member board voted unanimously to approve the bid.
The PATMC also voted 7-1 to approve the ‘enhancement agreement? between itself and the RCOC, which is acting as the intermediary for the processing and coordination of the trail project with the Michigan Department of Transportation and Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
PATMC member Sue Bellairs, who also serves as an Oxford Township Board trustee, cast the lone dissenting vote. ‘It just didn’t pass my smell test,? she said.
‘It was so rush-rush,? Bellairs said. ‘We never had any of the information . . . (Obrecht) kept control of all that bridge stuff. He had a real control issue over those plans.?
A combination of ‘too many variables? the trail council had ‘no way of controlling? coupled with her own unanswered questions about the project led Bellairs to vote no. She fears the project will go over-budget and the participating townships and villages will be required to pay the overage.
Cost-overruns are the responsibility of the PATMC ? and therefore the responsibility of the three townships and two villages which makeup and fund the council ? according to the enhancement agreement with the road commission.
In a June 9 letter to the trail council commenting on the enhancement agreement, attorney Matt Gibb stated, ‘The agreement is notably one sided, and offers little, if any protection for the council in the event of cost-overrun, delay or other problems.?
‘If the project costs run over the federal funding amounts, PATMC is responsible for reimbursement to RCOC for all overruns. That implies that RCOC will go ahead and finish the project, but PATMC could get a bill in the end, and the amount is presently undeterminable,? Gibb wrote. ‘If there are costs beyond the federal funds and the match, PATMC will get an invoice and have to pay that invoice in 30 days.?
Only two qualified bids for the bridge/trail project were received by the RCOC, according to William Conklin, design engineer for the road commission.
In a July 13 letter, Conklin explained ‘we believe only two bids were submitted? due to the current ‘high workload? of ‘other qualified bidders? and ‘the unique work items on this project.?
Obrecht told the trail council Anlaan’s bid ‘came in under our budgeted amount ($2,399,692),? leaving enough for a contingency fund of about 5 percent. The rejected bid was for $2,291,893.
The bridge and trail project is being financed by $1,871,760 in federal funding plus $527,933 in matching private grants and donations.
Although Anlaan’s proposal was the low bid and under budget, it did exceed the project’s design estimate ($2,098,317) by 9 percent. However, a July 13 memo from the road commission explained why.
‘Given the large number of unusual bid items on this project, the design estimate should not be expected to be highly accurate as current comparable costs are generally not available for these unusual items,? the memo stated.
Because the project budget is ‘tight,? Obrecht told the trail council there will be a ‘pre-construction meeting? with the Anlaan Corporation July 25 ‘to clearly identify that we are not interested in a lot of add-ons or any add-ons with the possible exception of a staircase.?
The nearly $2.3 million project includes construction of a 1800s railroad-style, double-arched, steel bridge to allow trail users (bicyclists, walkers, hikers, joggers, etc.) to safely cross M-24 in downtown Oxford.
The bridge will be located between Church and Center streets on the east side of M-24 and just north of Davison Street on the west side.
Trail users will gain access to the bridge via approximately 450-foot ramp-like approaches to be located on the east (at Center and Louck streets) and west (Pleasant Street) sides.
Because the bridge will be constructed off-site and placed at the site between the approaches as a pre-fabricated unit, Trail Council Chair Geno Mallia, Jr. said it’s been estimated M-24 would only be closed to traffic for 1? days.
Also included in the project is the surfacing of 12.2 miles of the Polly Ann Trail from Bordman Road to the north in Addison Township to Indianwood Road to the south in Orion Township.
While the trail surface within the villages of Oxford and Leonard will consist of asphalt, the remainder will be topped with crushed limestone, packed down to form a flat surface.
‘It’s similar to the Paint Creek Trail,? said Polly Ann Trail Manager Lois Golden. ‘It’s crushed very, very fine. It’s almost like concrete, but it’s porous and it’s softer.?
‘It really holds up quite well,? she later added.
Mallia asked if the surfacing would start simultaneously at the north and south ends and work ‘toward the center.?
Golden said that will have to be determined at a future construction meeting. She noted that when the Paint Creek Trail was resurfaced, ‘They only closed a small portion at a time and moved it along.?
Golden is anticipating ‘the bulk of the trail will probably remain open during this resurfacing,?
Scott Hudson, a Waterford resident who also sits on that township’s planning commission, attended last week’s trail council meeting and had nothing but praise for the group.
‘I think you guys are doing great work pursuing it and sticking with it,? he said, noting Waterford made ‘walkability? part of its recently approved master plan.
?(Waterford is) not particularly walkable right now,? Hudson said. ‘Keep up the good work. I’m watching what you’re doing.?