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Local contractors urge permit reform, collaborative delivery and workforce investment to speed Salinas projects
Summary
Local contractors at a Salinas roundtable said permitting friction, fragmented bid packages and a shrinking skilled workforce drive up project costs and delivery times; they recommended earlier contractor involvement, consistent bidding documents and stronger workforce pipelines.
A contractor roundtable at the Salinas summit highlighted recurring barriers that slow infrastructure delivery: fragmented or inconsistent bid documents, lengthy permitting and environmental compliance, and shortages in skilled trades.
Granite Construction vice president Bill McGowan said collaborative delivery methods such as construction manager/general contractor (CMGC) and progressive design‑build have helped compress schedules and reduce change orders because contractors can advise on constructability and pricing early in design. "When you bring the contractor in the planning and the design phase, you can match that scope with available funding," he said.
Engineers and contractor associations told Salinas officials they want clearer, standardized bid documents and accurate advertising dates so prevailing wage, registration and Davis‑Bacon/ federal compliance are handled consistently. Christy Chromings (Builders Association) urged jurisdictions to avoid simultaneously releasing many small phased bid packages with overlapping dates because that fragments labor and supply availability and increases administrative burden.
Panelists also sounded the alarm on workforce: local trade groups and contractors reported aging craft workforces and insufficient new entrants into plumbing, heavy equipment operation and skilled trades. They recommended stronger partnerships with schools, community colleges, union apprenticeship programs and employer outreach to expose young people to construction careers, including hands‑on training and newer tools such as VR/AR and remote‑operation pilots.
On permitting, contractors said the time from design to construction can be four to five times the construction duration, increasing inflationary costs. They recommended local permitting reforms and earlier interagency coordination to reduce friction and to make more projects shovel‑ready when funding arrives.
Local governments were urged to schedule industry outreach, standardize bid documents and explore collaborative delivery on complex, multi‑jurisdictional jobs to accelerate results and control costs.
