Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Spirit of Shawano Park will get its planned renovation, but a shortage of contractors interested in doing the work is delaying the project for a while.
The Shawano Park and Recreation Department had gotten only one offer when bids were opened Tuesday, and that bid turned out to be more than twice what the department was expecting to pay.
Matt Hendricks, park and recreation director, said a price tag of around $90,000 was anticipated for the project, based on estimates from consultant Rettler Corp., of Stevens Point.
Instead, the one bid that came in was just over $184,000.
“We didn’t see what we wanted to see,” Hendricks said.
The bid was presented Tuesday to the park and recreation commission, which recommended that the Common Council reject the offer when it meets next week.
Hendricks said the problem could be an issue of timing.
“Contractors are having a good summer,” he said. “They’re very busy and they’re not necessarily looking for work.”
He said that might account for the inflated price and the lack of bids from other contractors.
Hendricks said 10 contractors requested specs for the job, but only one followed through with a bid.
Rettler Corp. will contact the contractors who didn’t bid to see why they decided not to bid.
“If it was a timing issue, we’ll rebid,” Hendricks said. “Maybe this fall, maybe in the winter, but we’ll wait for feedback.”
Hendricks said the city still plans to go forward with the renovation of the park.
Earlier this year, the Common Council approved a $14,500 contract with Rettler Corp. to draft the design and construction plans.
The park is located on the northeast and southeast corners of the intersection of Green Bay and Main streets, and features statues paying tribute to farming and logging.
Those monuments will stay, but their location might shift a bit under the renovation plan.
The names of more than 1,300 donors cut into stone blocks at the site will be re-engraved on some other type of surface because the stone they’re engraved in now has degraded.
The plan also calls for new trees, plantings and landscaping, along with a welcoming sign that would stretch across Green Bay Street.