Sedalia plans State Fair Boulevard repairs

The Sedalia City Council is expected to award a contract for an upcoming project to reconstruct a portion of the northbound lane of South State Fair Boulevard and review two change orders for the Downtown Streetscape project at its meeting Monday.

Council members are scheduled to meet for a 6 p.m. work session Monday, when they will hear presentations from representatives with the Sedalia Area Chamber of Commerce and Scott Joplin Foundation. The council will then convene in the council chambers at 7 p.m.

The council is expected to review the 10 bids it received for a reconstruction project aimed at improving the northbound lane of South State Fair Boulevard from West Broadway Boulevard to West 16th Street. The project is anticipated to be completed before the 2010 Missouri State Fair.

Proposals came in between $660,000 and $1.07 million for the project, all below the $1.15 million that engineers estimated for the work. After reviewing proposals and company references, city staff is recommending the council accept the low bid of $659,735.80 from Precision Construction, of Lone Jack.

Council members also are expected to take up two change orders on the first phase of the Downtown Streetscape project. According to the council agenda, crews found material adjustments were required to match field conditions as construction continued on the project. Additionally, there were some unsuitable soils, rock removal and storm sewer reconfigurations required to complete the project to specifications.

Both change orders were approved by the Missouri Department of Transportation. The total change in work cost is $17,102.92, raising the total contract amount to nearly $1.81 million.

At 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the city’s Administrator Selection Committee will meet for the first time to begin efforts to find a full-time replacement for Keith Riesberg, who recently left his role as Sedalia’s city administrator to take the same job in O’Fallon.