Work continues on county projects

The Marshall County Board of Supervisors, with county engineer Larry Britt's guidance, moved through a number of ongoing projects, several dealing with road and natural gas with Project Poppy, and one looking over rating companies that offered Requests for Proposals (RFPs) on tornado debris removal, hauling and disposal in the Slayden area.

First, Britt asked for a payment of $288,428 to Trey Construction for estimate #3 for construction of a wastewater sewer system on Hyline Drive. The project, paid for by monies from the American Recovery Plan Act, will lay sewer lines and install lift stations to clean up an area in which raw sewage has been leaking into the yards and ditches after lagoons failed.

Britt opened bids on three projects located at the battery plant site, one for natural gas, one for construction of part of road 5A at the entrance of the site and a third for paving.

Four companies bid for the overlay of a five-lane portion road 5B.

Lehman-Roberts was low bidder at $191,106 followed by Standard Construction at $219,262; J.M. Duncan at $219,201; and Double T Construction at $219,865. Lehman-Roberts won the bid.

Bids were opened on construction of the north part of the entrance road to Project Poppy, project 3A.

Low bidder was Townes Construction at $1,127,763.

Other bidders were SteBil at $1,350,147 and Chancellor Brothers at $1,429,459.

Britt said the engineer's estimate for the project was higher than Townes Construction bid.

Four bids were received for the natural gas project, which engineers estimated at $3.9 million.

Britt recommended that that the bid of Mid-South Boring and Piping out of Collierville, Tenn., be returned unopened because the bidder did not use the right bid form for the addendum. The board approved return of MidSouth's bid.

Other bidders included low bidder TJ Construction Inc. of Florence, Ala., at $2,270,374, Southeastern Pipeline Environmental Services at $3,310,380, and Eubanks Construction out of Booneville at $5,303,590.

Britt said there are a lot of regulators and metering stations involved in the project and TJ's bid was low by twice the engineer's estimate. But he discussed the bid with TJ Construction and they wanted to leave their bid in.

Britt then discussed prospects for funding of the State Aid program the next four years and the Local System Bridge Program (LSBP). He said State Aid funds will

double over the next four years.

He said LSBP programs their projects and the money is obligated.

“The LSBP program moneyis not set aside for a the specific project,” Britt said. “You will continue to get these letters saying `we are taking some of your LSBP funds.”

He said that means they are moving that money into another account. The French Road bridge project falls under the LSBP program. Completion of the bridge project has been held up by a right-of-way needed from one family.

Board attorney Amanda Whaley Smith said the last deed on that property was 1916 and there has been no conveyance since. That means there are about 100 heirs since then, she said.

“It's quite a nightmare, but we're working on it this week,” she said.

Britt reported on the Blackwater Road bridge raise project.

“Did you get the money on Blackwater Bridge, he asked.

County administrator Tim Powell said the money has been received.

Britt said the project still has a bidder and if the bid is too old, it can be renegotiated to change the scope of the project designed to raise Blackwater Bridges to above the floodplain. Flooding in past years has caused residents trying to get through from Highway 310 onto Blackwater or to get out to 310 to have to go the long way around.

“Did we not talk about eliminating one of the bridges?” District 4 supervisor George Zinn III asked.

“I wouldn't recommend it,” Britt said.

“Did the bid consider eliminating one of the three spans?” Zinn asked.

Britt said the bridge is actually a three span bridge and the bridges have not been raised.

“If we don't eliminate a span, we'll talk to him (the bidder) to see if he is still interested,” he said.

Powell said the county already has the money and just needs to get a memorandum of understanding.

Zinn asked road and bridge manager Mario Jeffries if he had another bid.

Jeffries said Townes Construction from Grenada did call about it.

“My wish is to move forward with what money we have,” Zinn said. “If he (the bidder) is not willing, we need to bid it back out.”