Committee advances $1.79 million Rock Island Trail Greenwood connector to full legislature

The Jackson County Public Works Committee on Wednesday voted to advance Ordinance 6,048 to the full legislature, moving forward a contract award for the Rock Island Trail Greenwood connector to Terry Snelling Construction of Independence, Missouri.

Michelle Newman, director of Jackson County Parks plus Rec, told the committee plans and specifications were prepared and Purchasing issued Invitation to Bid No. 25034. Newman said there were 74 document takers and four bid responses; purchasing and Parks recommended Terry Snelling as the lowest responsive bidder at $1,794,489. The ordinance includes two MoDOT grants totaling $950,000 and requests a $120,000 contingency for change orders.

Richard Allen, superintendent of planning and development for Parks plus Rec, described the bids and unit prices, saying the largest differences were in tree clearing and concrete line items and that Terry Snelling’s unit prices were in line with the engineer’s estimate. "When we evaluated the bids, the two line items that had probably the biggest difference was the tree clearing ... and then also, was the concrete," Allen said. He added the engineer’s estimate was $1,751,000 and the low bid of $1,794,000 was within that range.

Committee Chair Manuel Bark pressed staff on why unit prices differed so markedly and expressed concern that very low bids can reflect underpaid labor. "I hate when we save the money on the backs of contractors," Bark said, asking whether prevailing‑wage or compliance reviews had been completed. Allen and Parks staff said Purchasing had checked the contractor’s references and that outreach to municipalities where the contractor had worked yielded satisfactory feedback; staff reported no compliance flags during their checks.

A committee member also warned that grant timing factored into the recommendation. Parks staff said the county risks losing $1,000,000 in grant funding if the project is not approved this year. "We run the risk of losing $1,000,000 in grant funds if we do not pass this," a Parks representative said.

Committee members requested complete bid documents be provided to the county auditor before the ordinance proceeds. After discussion a motion to adopt the committee recommendation was made and seconded; by voice vote the chair said "the ayes have it" and the item was moved forward to the legislature as a whole.

The ordinance would appropriate $950,000 in MoDOT grant funds into the proper spending account and authorize a construction contract not to exceed $1,910,000 including contingency. The project—extending the Rock Island Trail about 1.5 miles from Southwest Jefferson Street to Southeast Hamlin Road—is described in committee materials as a critical connection toward linking the Rock Island Trail to Pleasant Hill.

Next steps: the ordinance will be considered by the full Jackson County legislature. Committee members said they expect copies of the full bid package and the purchasing file to be provided to the auditor and committee staff prior to final legislative consideration.