City officials predict the price for completion of the area
before holiday shopping
Gilroy – The price tag to complete major downtown construction before the holiday shopping season will settle at $70,000, city officials predict.
“I think it’s a small price to pay,” City Administrator Jay Baksa said, “because the issue of getting the downtown back to basic operation before winter is critical. If we don’t and we have a wet winter like we had last year, this thing could be going on for many months into the spring.”
Businesses along a two block stretch of historic Monterey Street have faced onto a wasteland of construction for most of the year. The facelift to the street and sidewalks between Fourth and Sixth streets was scheduled to wrap up in July and September, respectively, but an unusually long rain season and technical snags have pushed the deadline back by several months.
The additional $70,000 is part of new agreement with contractor Golden Bay Construction, of Hayward to fast-track the project. Nearly half the money will pay for extra work crews and overtime costs of $1,500 to $2,000 per day for working Saturdays during a four-month period that started in August; the remainder of the funds will finance incentives for the contractor if workers meet a new set of target completion dates for various phases of the project.
City officials said they have not experienced any additional delays and expect Monterey Street to re-open Oct. 13, with sidewalk work wrapping up Nov. 22.
Larry Mickartz, president of the Gilroy Downtown Business Association, had mixed feelings about the announcement of the $70,000 bill.
“(The merchants) are getting really anxious,” he said. “Their desire is to see it get done as soon as possible. If it takes $70,000, so be it.”
But I guess the other side of this is, where were all these negotiations several months ago?” he continued. “When I bid a job, I can give a pretty good estimate if it’s something I’ve done before. If it’s something I’ve never done, I always build in a little extra time. I would think the city would do the same.”
