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SPSA board awards $20.995 million contract to Ryan Central for Cell 7 Phase 1
Summary
The Southeastern Public Service Authority board voted to award the Phase 1 construction contract for landfill Cell 7 to Ryan Central at a price below the engineer's estimate; board and staff flagged a large bid variance driven by excavation pricing and noted critical permitting and access steps to keep the schedule on track.
The Southeastern Public Service Authority (SPSA) Board of Directors voted Aug. 27 to award the Phase 1 construction contract for Cell 7 at the regional landfill to Ryan Central for $20,995,000.
Board members and engineers said the award came in below the project engineer's probable cost estimate of $22,340,700 and after a review of three bids that ranged from about $21 million to roughly $31 million. SPSA’s consultant and staff cited a large variance in excavation line-item pricing as the main driver of the spread between the low and high bids.
The board’s engineering consultant presented the project as the next strategic step to add roughly 12 million cubic yards of capacity across multiple phases of Cell 7 and described Phase 1 as work on the eastern portion of the cell. The consultant said the bid evaluation considered price, technical approach, prior experience and schedule compliance. “In our evaluation, Ryan Central not only being the lowest price overall, but they also came in terms of the all the other parts of the evaluation scored a higher on the evaluation scores,” the consultant said.
Why it matters: Cell 7 is a major element of SPSA’s long-term landfill development plan and ties into other projects including a planned flyover and roadway work. Awarding a contractor starts critical-path activities — tree clearing, surveys, access and permits — that must occur this fall and winter to meet construction and sequencing targets.
Details from the board packet and presentation: - Engineer’s probable cost estimate: $22,340,700. - Lowest bid (recommended): Ryan Central, $20,995,000. - Other bidders: Wharton Corp and Thale Corp (bid amounts not fully stated in the presentation). - Excavation price disparity: low bidder listed excavation at approximately $4,860,000; mid-range at ~$8,600,000; high bidder at ~$13,000,000 (consultant breakdowns presented to the board). - Ryan Central indicated confidence in its price and offered a further $300,000 potential reduction if the gas company permits crossing the gas line rather than routing around it; staff estimated a $150,000 cost associated with that option.
Board discussion and safeguards: Board members pressed staff on contingency levels and asked for follow-up on unit pricing. One member said he had been “burned” by underestimates on prior projects and asked for confirmation of contingency amounts; staff said contingency details would be circulated by email after the meeting and that the selection team had confidence in the recommended bidder’s experience and pricing. The board noted the bid came in under the engineer’s estimate, which the presenter characterized as favorable.
Next steps: The executive director and staff described several critical-path items now underway, including meetings with Suffolk planning and permitting staff to pursue a land-disturbance permit or other approvals, resolution of an easement across railroad property for Magnolia access, and immediate tree-clearing and grubbing contracts for Cells 8 and 9 so soil can be staged and moved as required for the project sequence. Staff said they expect to push these items quickly over the coming weeks so construction can start on schedule.
The board approved the contract award by voice vote after motion and second and recorded the motion as carried.
