Shawnee County rejects bid for Barrington Road culvert replacement; will relet with later start date

On April 17 the Shawnee County Board of County Commissioners voted 2-0 to reject the only bid received for a culvert replacement project on Southeast Barrington Road over a tributary to Lynn Creek and to resolicit bids at a later date.

Courtney House, director of Public Works, told commissioners the single bid arrived about $500,000 higher than the engineer's estimate — roughly a 27% increase — well above the 10% allowance under state statute. "We received a single bid, which was approximately $500,000 higher than the engineer's estimate," House said. "It came out to approximately a 27% increase, which is well above the 10 allowed by state statute. So I'm here before you asking you to reject the bid. We will try again."

The rejection motion was made by Commissioner Erin Mays and seconded by Commissioner Kevin Cook; the motion carried 2 to 0. Commissioners directed staff to relet the work with a later contract start date, aiming for late 2025 into early 2026 when contractor availability is expected to improve.

House said the county plans to relet the project soon but will set a start window in the fourth quarter of 2025 or the first quarter of 2026 so contractors already booked for 2025 can bid for the later start. She said the county is not combining the Barrington Road work contractually with another nearby culvert project, although staff hope the same contractor might take both later jobs. "We're hoping the contractor that works on the Barrington Road project will also be available to work on the Southeast 30 Seventh job at Lake Javarro," House said. "We're thinking the same way you are. We're just not going ahead and combining the two projects."

Commissioners asked about immediate safety impacts. House said there are no current safety concerns that would require road closures or restrictions. Commissioners noted the culvert site is near an elementary school and expressed concern about the public perception of construction timing and disruptions to school buses. House acknowledged the concern and said the county had intended to place as much work as possible over summer break but that contractor availability makes that unlikely.

House also reported other recent bid outcomes: a Lake Javarro culvert letting produced zero bids, and the county plans to delay that letting as well. A separate bridge project on Jordan Road will follow the same strategy. "All the contractors are already booked up for the year," House said, citing an upswing in construction projects across jurisdictions.

The county will resolicit the Barrington Road bid with a later start date and return to the commission when the solicitation and schedule are set.