Beals Road bridge: clerical bid error prompts council to raise article cap to $3M; town says federal funds cover cost

The Bedford Town Council on Jan. 22 heard a late‑breaking procurement update for the Beals Road bridge replacement: the apparent low bidder submitted a clerical error in the unit‑price section of the bid packet, and federal funding rules may require the town to award to the next lowest qualified bidder.

Public Works Director Jeff Foote told the council that the error involved a unit price entered as a total for a set of line items; the Federal Highway Administration has the authority to disallow an award to a bidder with material clerical errors, and state and federal officials indicated the town should be prepared to proceed with the second‑lowest bidder. Foote said the town had discussed the issue with the New Hampshire Department of Transportation; to avoid a mismatch between the article amount and possible award the town recommended increasing the article authorization to $3,000,000 as a worst‑case accounting measure.

Town staff emphasized the change imposes no tax cost on Bedford residents because the project is funded primarily through federal and state programs; the council moved the article to the deliberative session with the increased authorization and recorded a unanimous recommendation in favor.

Councilors asked for clarification on bid counts and process; Foote said several bidders responded across the two bridge procurements and that the town and DOT would pursue negotiation with federal authorities to preserve the apparent low bid where permissible. The council approved the amended article so the town would not be delayed if federal review requires a higher award figure.