Tyrone Borough Council has hired an Altoona-based firm to do inspection work for the next phases of the town’s Streetscape project.
Council made the decision by motion and voice vote at last Monday’s meeting.
Last year, council rejected bids for Streetscape Phase IIA when it decided bids had come in higher than expected. Instead, council decided to combine that portion of the project with Phase IIB in an effort to possibly get better bids.
The borough has been approved for more than a half-a-million dollars in transportation funding to use for both phases of the project.
Tyrone has approved Innovative Consulting Group, Inc. for inspection or what the firm calls “construction management services” for Streetscape.
IGA said in its proposal it expects actual construction and procedural paperwork to take three or four months.
The Feb. 17 proposal letter noted the borough’s decision to combine the phases and have the project rebid. The decision led to IGA having to revise its proposal to include additional work and provide for any annual wage increases that occurred during the past year.
IGA pointed out services would be provided on a time basis until the project and paperwork are completely. It was noted the current project had increased in overall length by about 25 percent compared to the original plans which would have seen the phases done separately.
The proposal gave an example that if construction and documentation services lasted for four months at straight time, the total inspection fee would be just over $31,000 dollars with almost $1,100 in mileage costs.
The proposal listed a breakdown of hourly wages as Inspector, TCI-2-$44.22 an hour and an overtime rate of $66.34 an hour. Mileage would be charged port to port at the rate of 0.405 cents a mile.
The proposal noted if construction consultation service, walk through or a site visit is requested, it will be provided on a time basis with the following rates: project manager-$99.50; project engineer, $51.79; a two-man survey crew-$60.00 an hour and chief of survey at $99.50 an hour.
In June of last year The Daily Herald reported Streetscape IIA will include West 10th Street running west of Logan Avenue also East 10th Street going east of Bald Eagle Creek; portions of Pennsylvania Avenue, from East 11th to East 12th Street and Logan Avenue, north of West 10th Street.
Phase II B will include Logan Avenue between West Ninth Street and West 10th Street.
The project was originally slated to be done in 2003, but was delayed while approval was sought for propriety items for the project. For aesthetic reasons, the borough wants to use the same street lights and fire hydrants as in the already completed portion of the Streetscape project. That first phase was completed in 2002.
Tyrone has been approved for $310,000 in transportation funding for Phase II A and $230,000 for Phase II B.
Bids for the Streetscape project are due to be advertised on April 21 with a pre-bid conference on May 3 and bid openings scheduled for May 12, according to interim borough manager, Sharon Dannaway.
