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Southborough trails committee amends Peninsula Trail bridge bid deadline to Dec. 10
Summary
The Trails Committee voted Nov. 6 to approve the Peninsula Trail pedestrian‑bridge solicitation as amended to move the bid due date from Dec. 3 to Dec. 10, citing holiday timing and the need for sufficient contractor response time. The committee also reviewed pre‑bid logistics, parking, and ARPA/MassTrails funding requirements.
The Town of Southborough Trails Committee voted Nov. 6 to approve the Peninsula Trail pedestrian‑bridge solicitation as amended to change the bid submission deadline to Dec. 10. Committee members said the later date gives contractors more time during the Thanksgiving period and fits the project’s funding timeline.
The committee’s review centered on the bid cover page, procurement deadlines and a pre‑bid site visit. The draft solicitation lists a posting date of Nov. 19 and originally set proposals due on Dec. 3; the committee agreed to request a one‑week extension. Chair Kat McKee said the timeline was short given the holiday and prevailing‑wage and ARPA reporting constraints. “That’s not enough time for people,” a committee member said during the discussion.
Why it matters: The contract will fund construction of a boardwalk/pedestrian bridge on the Peninsula Trail, a portion of the Burrows Loop and Aqueduct Trail that links Southborough trails to regional routes. The project is funded in part with competitive grants; the committee signaled the town needs a completed procurement to meet grant and invoicing deadlines.
Details: Committee members discussed the pre‑bid site visit logistics, an address change for the meeting location after a nearby lot was fenced, and parking arrangements with MWRA/Sunapee property owners. The committee also noted the solicitation includes prevailing‑wage language and a bidders’ conference. Recreation Director Travis offered to coordinate availability and quarterly invoicing reports to the committee if Recreation manages the contract. “I could even send you quarterly invoices, quarterly budgeted reports for the trails to give you guys an update,” Travis told the committee.
Vote: Kat McKee moved to accept the bid as amended to change the due date to Dec. 10; Will Warren seconded. Roll call votes were recorded: Will Warren — yes; Tom McCoolier — yes; Kat McKee — yes. The motion passed.
Next steps: The committee asked town procurement staff (Melanie/Carla referenced in the meeting) to post the solicitation with the requested change if permitted, confirm pre‑bid logistics and provide the final posting. The committee set a follow‑up Trails Committee meeting for Nov. 13 to finalize budgets and to be ready for any procurement actions; it discussed scheduling a Dec. 10 meeting if that is set as the bid‑opening date.
Funding and requirements: The solicitation includes references to grant funding and prevailing‑wage requirements and the committee said it will coordinate with the project engineer (Beals & Thomas) for technical questions. The committee noted remaining ARPA reporting and MassTrails/CPA acknowledgement requirements would be addressed in the contract paperwork.
