T&S Builders chosen for public restroom project with $260,764 bid

KENT — A local builder made the successful bid to build the public restroom in the center of town. 

Tim Sneller of T&S Builders in Kent submitted the low bid of $260,764. 

The bids were opened by First Selectman Bruce Adams and members of the Public Restroom and Visitor Center Sub-Committee at Town Hall on Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 21. The sub-committee is headed by Merle Koblenz; the other members are architect John Milnes Baker, who designed the new restroom, Mike Everett and Selectman Michael Van Valkenburg.

Two other bids were submitted. The first to be opened was from H&Y Construction of Brookfield and was $367,670. 

Second to be opened was a bid of $373,687 by Montagno Construction of Waterbury. 

Tim Sneller of T&S and Nicholas Barone of Montagno were present at the bid opening. 

A late, low bid

A bit of drama was injected into the proceedings when a fourth contractor called from the road and said he was coming from Waterbury but was stuck behind a school bus and would be about three minutes late. 

Bid openings are supposed to happen exactly on schedule. Adams asked the other two contractors if they would mind waiting for the additional bidder to arrive. Barone said that it could open a can of worms if they wait.

Adams said they would wait for five minutes. The bidder didn’t arrive and the bids were opened.

Adams said that the lowest bid was from T&S and that the sub-committee would look over the details of the bid to be sure that no portions of the project had been overlooked. 

After Barone and Sneller left the room, Adams and the sub-committee members speculated on how T&S was able to promise such a low price. The consensus was that being local allowed him cost savings in several areas. 

Shortly after the other contractors left, the missing bidder arrived, apologizing for his tardiness. 

Jay Prince said that his bid was $215,040. But because he was too late, his bid could not be considered. Prince thanked the selectmen for the opportunity and departed.

The first selectman noted that the town would not have been able to afford the two high bidders; the budget for the restroom project is $300,000.

A better driveway plan

He then noted that a slight change must be made to the plans. An arborist had visited the site with him and said that the driveway, as planned, would kill two maple trees. One of the trees is already ailing and will need to be taken down. The other one is lush and healthy, despite the recent drought, Adams said. 

To avoid killing the healthy maple, Adams proposed making a semi-circular driveway instead of the long straight one originally included in the plan. It would probably reduce the cost of the project and, Everett said, it would improve the esthetics of the project. 

“A semi-circular driveway would anchor it visually so it doesn’t look so float-y,” he said.

The revised driveway would also allow the restroom and welcome center to be moved closer to the road.

“The Chamber of Commerce was disappointed that the building was set so far back,” Adams said. “They were hoping to use the area behind the building for events, such as the summer concerts that were held on the Town Hall lawn this year. The area behind the welcome center is shadier.”

The group also discussed re-routing two privately owned roads on either side of the planned restroom. The idea would be to make Library Street and Railroad Street each go one way, in different directions (as an ingress and egress). Adams has discussed the idea with representatives of the Kent Memorial Library and with Peter D’Aprile of the Kent Apothecary; both approved in principle. Adams will present the plan to the other abutting landowners.

South Street autos

Unofficially, after the meeting adjourned, the two selectmen and the sub-committee members discussed a recent and succesful effort to clean up a property on South Street.

The property owner had collected 20 older cars, some with no engine. They had been stored at another location but had recently been moved to the South Street location, to the consternation of his neighbors and area residents.

“For a period of time I was getting more calls about this than about anything else,” Adams said.

The zoning enforcement officer and Planning and Zoning Commission eventually took the complaint to court, and the property owner was ordered to remove the cars.

“I don’t know where they went,” Adams said. “But they’re gone.”