Dysart et al council recently crossed another bridge in its efforts to keep people moving safely through Head Lake Park. Public works director, Rob Camelon, told elected officials at a recent meeting the township received six bids for the replacement of the footbridge in the Haliburton village park.
The contract was awarded to Scarborough-based McPherson-Andrews Contracting Ltd., which was the low bidder at $370,950 plus HST. They will tear down the existing bridge and replace it with a prefabricated structure.
Other bidders included Haliburton’s Total Site Services ($393,393), A2Z Civil ($420,050), KB Civil Constructors ($427,294), Four Brothers Construction ($483,770) and Clearwater Structures Inc. ($578,703).
Camelon said, as well as bidding the lowest, McPherson-Andrews also has experience working with D.M. Wills and Associates, the engineering firm retained to manage the project. The two companies worked together on the recent bridge replacement on Barry’s Line, he said.
Although the days are drawing shorter, Camelon said he expects the project to be completed this year.
“The bridge is moving ahead for replacement this fall, but the schedule is still up in the air,” he told The Highlander, saying the structure still needs to be made, with no firm timeline in place.
The public shouldn’t expect a like-for-like swap, with council opting against an arcdesign earlier this year. Camelon presented plans in March but elected officials baulked at the minimum $590,000 price tag, instead opting for a more economic option.
The township received clearance from Transport Canada to install a Bailey bridge, with the shallow stretch of Drag River that runs into Head Lake not considered a navigable waterway.
