BERLIN – The town received two bids for demolition work at Heron Park.
On Wednesday, Town of Berlin officials opened bids for the demolition of some portions of the old chicken processing plant at Heron Park. Bids will now be analyzed by Davis, Bowen & Friedel Inc. (DBF) before a recommendation is made to the town council on how to proceed.
“Generally, we can say with fair certainty how we anticipate moving forward, but in this case, the difference between the two bids is too significant to make an immediate decision,” Town Administrator Mary Bohlen said. “Our engineering firm will be analyzing the bids and providing us with guidance on moving forward.”
After more than a year was spent negotiating with a developer who wanted to turn the old processing plant into a mixed-use project, the council in the fall opted not to proceed. Instead, officials decided to focus efforts on a $500,000 strategic demolition grant the town received from the state in 2021 that must be used by June.
Officials had DBF develop bid documents for demolition. The engineering company broke the project up into a base bid that would address demolition of the two sections of the existing structure in the worst condition — known as sections one and two — and additional alternatives that could be added to the base bid — such as the addition of the demolition of what is known as area three. The town would be able to do more if the grant funding stretched far enough.
The bids opened this week included a base bid of $83,980 from JNT Enterprises of Pasadena. The base bid includes mobilization, bonds and insurance, general site preparation, site debris removal and perimeter controls and demolishing areas one and two. The add alternate, which would be demolition of what’s known as area three, would be an additional $24,435. To remove debris and hazardous materials from the other interior buildings, JNT Enterprises bid at $4,300. The total bid from JNT Enterprises came to $112,625.
From Reynolds Excavating of Princess Anne, the town received a base bid of $132,500 with an add alternate of $205,000 to demolish area three. To remove debris and hazardous materials from the other interior buildings, Reynolds Excavating bid $115,000, bringing the total bid for the entire scope of work outlined in the RFP to $452,500.
Bohlen expects to have a recommendation to present to the town council at its Jan. 22 meeting.
