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Essex County approves major public‑works contracts, federal grants and $21.4M bridge design award
Summary
The county board approved multiple public‑works and parks contracts, including federal‑grant‑funded traffic‑signal projects and a $21,398,692.53 NJDOT insertion to design the Bridge Street bridge replacement; vendors and staff described scope, local hiring and funding sources.
Essex County commissioners on Tuesday approved a slate of contract awards and budget insertions that county staff said are funded largely by federal grants or developer agreements and intended to support building maintenance, traffic‑signal upgrades and park services.
David Antonio, director for the Department of Public Works, presented multiple public‑works items that the board approved on roll call. The board approved a three‑year facilities‑maintenance contract for the Essex County Hospital Center with DCO Energy described as not to exceed $8,143,251; David Del Vecchio of DCO Energy said the firm has worked at the hospital since it opened and that “roughly 30% of our employees are Essex County employees.”
The board also approved engineering and construction contracts tied to federal grants for signal and roadway improvements. Antonio summarized awards to engineering firms to provide construction engineering and support services for dozens of roadway and signal projects; the contract to Dewberry (engineering) covers construction support for 12 traffic signals (amount not to exceed $1,691,120) and was introduced by Akhla Zafar, who said the firm has done prior county intersections work. A separate construction award to Fagon Electric (amount not to exceed $9,887,292) covers upgrades to 10 existing intersections and construction of two new signals; Francisco D'Souza of Fagon said the company uses union hiring halls and seeks to fill roles with local residents.
County staff also presented a budget insertion from the New Jersey Department of Transportation for final design engineering of a full replacement of the Bridge Street bridge (item 79). The insertion amount announced to the board was $21,398,692.53; staff said that the total replacement cost will be substantially larger and that final design work will proceed in coordination with Hudson County.
Other approved items included parks contracts — a 24‑month contract for HVAC and compressor inspections at the Cody Arena and a landscape‑maintenance contract for parks in Bloomfield and Nutley — and a contract change order to add lithium‑powered golf‑cart maintenance to support three courses now open. Joshua Zaitis, representing Essex County Parks, said the golf‑cart change order reflects increased usage across the county’s courses and that detailed cart allocations will be provided after consultation with the golf director.
Several of the construction projects and contracts are fully funded by federal grants, county staff told the board. Staff repeatedly said that federal grant rules and any project or developer requirements will be followed and that projects affecting schools or pedestrian areas will include required accessibility and safety features; for example, Antonio said audible pedestrian signals will be included for intersections adjacent to schools.
The board moved the grouped contracts through the consent process by roll call vote. Commissioners also approved a series of budget insertions for prosecutor, sheriff and community‑action programs, an opioid‑settlement funding adjustment and a subaward for a state‑administered violence‑intervention program that will run from Oct. 1, 2025, to Sept. 30, 2026.
Next steps: county staff said they will deliver follow‑up details requested during the meeting — including golf‑cart allocation numbers and final design scheduling for the Bridge Street bridge — and handle any required environmental or federal permitting tied to the funded projects.
