Borough officials successfully negotiated down the cost of the Mount Dewey trail extension with the project’s only bidder to keep the work within budget. The assembly approved the contract at its Nov. 14 meeting after staff and the contractor cut more than half a million dollars from the job.
The contract is now about $25,000 below the original spending target.
The plan to improve the Mount Dewey trail system has been in progress since a 2014 public forum, when community members told borough staff that they’d like to see the trail updated. The design features a three-quarter-mile trail extension that will wrap behind Mount Dewey and connect to Bennet Street.
Originally, plans for this extension included a cedar step-and-run trail covered in anti-slip netting — similar to what is on the present trail — and a geogrid stabilization system that would prevent the trail’s gravel sections from dispersing into the muskeg beneath.
The new plan substitutes more cost-effective materials to make the project fit the borough’s budget, while still improving the accessibility of the trail.
The trail will use concrete blocks instead of timber stairs, gravel instead of step-and-run boardwalk and a cheaper alternative to the geogrid stabilization system. Sections of the trail will also be widened from three to six feet across — wider trails are actually cheaper to construct, Borough Manager Jeff Good explained at the Sept. 26 meeting, when assembly members gave staff permission to negotiate the scope of work.
The total project funding is $947,000, which is supposed to cover construction, inspection and administration costs for the trail addition. Contractor Ketchikan Ready-Mix — the sole bidder — initially offered to take on construction for $1,532,580.
The borough was willing to spend up to $850,000 for construction costs, and after adjusting its plans for the new trail, the borough negotiated the contractor’s price down to $824,450. Federal funding is paying for the project.
Capital Facilities Director Amber Al-Haddad hopes work can start in December, once Ketchikan Ready-Mix is finished with the clearing and grubbing work at the Alder Top Village (Keishangita.’aan) subdivision.
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