Gorham Sand & Gravel is the low bidder to reconstruct Brackett Road and part of Libby Avenue in Gorham, the Maine Department of Transportation said this week.
“We look forward to making it an asset to the town and the state,” said Mark Curtis, general manager of the construction firm based in Buxton, about the two thoroughfares that share the same intersection at New Portland Road.
Herb Thomson, director of communications for the Maine Department of Transportation, said Tuesday Gorham Sand & Gravel’s bid was $2.8 million, the lowest of five bids received. A contract would likely be awarded within three weeks and construction could begin this fall.
Entire cost of the project is about $4.7 million, including state engineering work and land acquisition. In a referendum two years ago, Gorham voters approved borrowing $1.3 million to pay for local share of the reconstruction.
The project was delayed earlier this year because of lack in state highway money. But a $100 million state bond referendum for highway projects passed in June by voters allowed the reconstruction to move forward.
All of Brackett Road, which links New Portland Road to Saco Street, and the portion of Libby Avenue between New Portland Road and Main Street will be rebuilt.
Curtis said weather would be a factor governing extent of construction this winter and he said asphalt plants would soon be closed until spring.
“We would like to start this fall,” Curtis said.
Preliminary work, such as ditching and installing culverts, would likely get under way before winter. Curtis said half of the company’s 70 employees would be assigned to the project during the winter months.
The two roads will be reconstructed with two 11-foot travel lanes and paved shoulders 4 feet wide, equaling a 30-foot width of pavement. Reconstruction will improve sight lines for motorists and give pedestrians and bicyclists paved paths.
Homes dot Brackett Road and Libby Avenue, which are both extensively utilized by commuters.
“I drive the road like everyone else,” said Curtis, who lives in Gorham.
Gorham Sand & Gravel, which is observing its 20th anniversary this year, is owned by Tom and Jim Shaw. They’re brothers of Danny and Jon Shaw, owners of Shaw Brothers Construction, Inc. of Gorham, which is building the Gorham by-pass.
The transportation department reported that other local contractors submitting bids for the Brackett Road-Libby Avenue job were R.J. Grondin and Sons, Gorham; Dearborn Brothers Construction, Buxton; and Shaw Brothers.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
