Dredging for Lynn ferry project out to bid for second time

LYNN – The dredging project for the Blossom Street extension ferry is going out to bid for a second time after the first bids came in nearly $300,000 over budget.”The dredging is the first piece of the final phase of this project,” said Economic Development and Industrial Corp. Executive Director James Cowdell. “We had only one bid.”The EDIC board had budgeted $300,000 to dredge 4,000 feet at the end of Blossom Street extension but Cowdell said the one bid came in and it was for $580,000.”Obviously we couldn’t award that,” he said.Cowdell said they made adjustments to the bid, namely increasing the budget to $400,000. EDIC Project Manager Mary Jane Smalley said “site clearing” also became an alternative project and was removed from the base price. She said if they can afford it they’ll include it in the package. If they can’t it’s out.EDIC consultant Ronald Bourne told Conservation Commission members Tuesday that dredging will be done at the water’s edge bordering Blossom Street extension.Dredged material determined to be re-useable will be spread across a land bordering the water’s edge between Bubier and Blossom streets after existing pavement is removed from the land.Bourne said plans for the parcel’s use include building a structure related to the ferry operation on it.EDIC has $3.2 million, which it was awarded by the Seaport Advisory Council in June, to pay for Phase III. The money has to cover the installation of a 60-foot wave attenuator, a new pier, final upland improvements such as new sidewalks, park amenities, paving, striping and lighting and the dredging, Cowdell said. He expects the entire project will take 12 months to complete then all the would be left is to buy the actual ferry.Cowdell told EDIC board members Tuesday that his only concern was the state’s dredging season is short, typically running from Nov. to Jan. 15. If the project couldn’t be completed by then the city would have to wait another year to get the project under way. However, Cowdell said he learned recently that the state has expanded the dredging season to February, which gives them a little more breathing room.According to Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Ed Coletta, the dredging season is limited in order to protect winter flounder, horseshoe crabs and several other variety of sea creatures that spawn during the winter months.Cowdell said, with the tweaks in place, he expects there will be more bids with more favorable estimates the second time around.The bids for the project are due Nov. 7.Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected]. Thor Jourgensen can be reached at [email protected].