Decorah City Council is likely to approve lowest bid on Locust Road

Bids were opened earlier this month on the Locust Road Improvement Project.  Skyline Construction submitted a bid of $5,473,404.41, while Reilly Construction submitted a bid of $5,884,874.60.

Decorah City Council members have discussed those bids at a work session and will hold a public hearing on May 4th and will vote on whether to award the project to the low bidder.

The city received a $1 million federal grant to help pay for the project, which means it would cost the city $4,473,404.  However, the estimated cost of the project to the city was $3.9 million.

City council members have discussed rejecting both bids and rebidding the project at a later date—but have decided against that option as having too many risks.  They have agreed that the city should not authorize an option included in the bids—extending the Locust Road project to include the road segment from Pine Crest to Highland Drive.  That option would cost another $1.125 million—and city council members say the city has bigger priorities for street work.