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Council approves $412,000 tennis‑court bid; city details street projects and Grand Avenue redesign
Summary
Council approved the lowest bid for tennis‑court and path work at Terrapart and heard staff updates on a $167,000 grant for James Avenue, a Grand Avenue repave with lane reconfiguration and bike lanes, and competing bids for the Midway streetscape.
The Fort Thomas City Council approved a bid for improvements to the Terrapart tennis complex and received staff updates on several public‑works projects including a county grant, a planned Grand Avenue reconfiguration and two competing bids for the Midway streetscape.
Council voted to accept the low bid from Queen City Blacktop for the Terrapart tennis court improvements. The project includes paving the quarter‑mile path through the woodlands around the complex, milling and repaving the upper and lower tennis courts, replacing fencing, striping the courts (the lower court will remain multi‑use for pickleball), and replacing pathways with a mix of steps and an ADA‑compliant ramp and railings. The lowest bid came in at about $412,000; staff estimated the total project near $445,000 initially and said the bid is under that estimate. Construction is scheduled to start July 7; staff estimated the work will take about two to three months and said newly paved surfaces must cure (about 30 days) before striping and final surfacing are applied.
The council packet also reflected a county priority projects grant of $167,000 the city received for James Avenue; staff said that funding reduces the city’s out‑of‑pocket cost for the 2025 street program and allows reallocation of city funds to other projects in the street budget.
Staff described a planned reconfiguration of Grand Avenue to two through lanes with a center turn lane and dedicated 7‑foot bike lanes on each side. The change is tied to a state repaving of Grand Avenue and a water main replacement by the regional water district; staff said the state will perform restriping and add curb improvements at no cost to the city, and the city has requested a speed‑limit analysis to consider lowering the limit to 30 mph as part of the repaving project.
Council also heard that the Midway streetscape — work to widen sidewalks, underground utilities, add decorative lighting and street trees between Garrison and Grandview — drew two bids. Cross Construction submitted a bid near $3.85 million after final adjustments; another bidder’s proposal was about $4.08 million. Staff said adjustments to trenching quantities and utility plans reduced the original estimate and that they will bring a formal recommendation to council after completing vetting, a telephone‑pole map and a full bid analysis.
During discussion of the Terrapart bid, councilors asked about schedule, school practices (the courts are Highlands High School home courts) and a community tennis tournament; staff said the July start date was coordinated with the school calendar and that the courts will be unavailable during construction. Staff also said they plan a slightly larger next‑year budget request (about $425,000 total) to add long‑lasting pickleball nets and other finish items.
The council’s roll‑call vote approved the Queen City Blacktop bid; staff said Queen City Blacktop has an adequate work history and the bid was within the committee’s vetting expectations.
Separately, staff warned about recent vandalism at Tower Park; city staff described significant damage to bathrooms and equipment and said camera evidence has helped identify suspects in past incidents. Staff said continued vandalism could lead to shortened restroom hours or other restrictions if problems persist.
No new borrowing or final contractor awards for Midway were approved at the meeting; staff said a full recommendation will follow once additional vetting and documentation are complete.
