GREAT LAKES CONSTRUCTION COMPANY IS APPARENT LOW BIDDER ON CLINTON STREET BRIDGE REPLACEMENT

Construction schedule to be determined

LIMA (Friday, October 26, 2018) – The Great Lakes Construction Company is the apparent low bidder on the project that will replace the bridge carrying state Route 15 (Clinton Street) over the Maumee River in Defiance. The company’s bid was the lowest out of the seven that were submitted Thursday, Oct. 25.

An analysis of the bids has begun to determine if The Great Lakes Construction Company remains the lowest bidder. The contract is expected to be awarded officially within two weeks, once the analysis is complete.

The contract was bid as an A plus B, with A being the cost to construct, and B the amount of time needed for full closure of the bridge, specifically a number between 260 and 290 days.

The project will completely replace the existing structure with a bridge that will carry four lanes of traffic and provide better access across the bridge for pedestrians, bicyclists and those with disabilities.

The bridge was initially planned to be constructed part-width to maintain traffic. But based on public feedback, officials with the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) District 1 made the decision last fall to close the bridge entirely during construction.

A full closure is expected to result in less congestion in the downtown area as traffic will disperse and travel other routes. The full closure also allows construction to be done differently than if traffic were to be maintained, which reduced the project’s expected duration.

“Contractors are the experts in construction. If there’s a way to do something more efficiently, they will find it and we’re encouraging them to do so,” said Kirk Slusher, deputy director for ODOT District 1.

Once the contact is awarded, ODOT and the Great Lakes Construction Company will hold a public meeting to share the construction schedule.

The Ohio Department of Transportation maintains the state's largest man-made asset – the transportation system. ODOT's mission is to provide the safe and easy movement of people and goods from place to place. As a $2.8 billion per year enterprise, ODOT invests the bulk of its resources in system preservation through maintenance, construction and snow and ice operations.

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