At its most recent meeting, the Bar Nunn Town Council decided to postpone the installation of speed tables along McMurry Boulevard and Tonkawa Trail. The council rejected all four bids it received and will issue a new request for proposals in the first quarter of next year.
Bid structure raised costs
Town engineer Ray Catellier explained that the original bidding process broke the project into separate alternatives for each crosswalk. This approach forced contractors to include mobilization and bond costs in every line item instead of spreading those expenses across the entire job. As a result, individual bids appeared much higher than the town’s original estimates.
Catellier cited Falcon Construction as the low bidder on one alternative, noting that $15,000 of the $36,000 total price was attributed to mobilization and bond fees. Because contractors could not know which alternatives the council would select, they built large contingency amounts into each option to protect their profit margins on what could become small, isolated jobs.
Material costs drove the decision
While concrete prices stayed within the town’s expectations, asphalt bids came back significantly higher. Catellier described the current cost of asphalt as “astronomical.” He reminded council members that asphalt typically lasts 15 to 20 years in this type of application, whereas concrete can provide a service life of roughly 40 years.
Mayor Peter Boyer expressed a preference for the longer‑lasting material, stating that paying an additional $3,000 to upgrade to concrete represented a better long‑term investment for Bar Nunn taxpayers.
Timing and contractor pool considerations
The council also weighed the timing of the award. Awarding a contract late in the current construction season would likely pit Bar Nunn against larger regional projects already occupying major contractors. To avoid this, council members voted to target a spring rebid, hoping to attract small‑to‑mid‑size concrete contractors who may have missed the initial online listing.
Catellier recommended opening the new bidding process in the first quarter of next year. He believes that a spring schedule will provide a broader pool of qualified contractors and allow the town to secure a more competitive price for the concrete solution.
Next steps
The town will post the revised request for proposals on its website and notify interested firms of the new timeline. Residents can expect the council to revisit the project during its next regular meeting, where the revised bid package will be presented for approval.
Bar Nunn officials emphasized that the decision reflects a commitment to fiscal responsibility and long‑term infrastructure quality, ensuring that the speed‑reduction measures will serve the community safely and efficiently for decades to come.
Original reporting: Oil City News (Casper WY) — read the source article.
