by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
According to the mayor’s office and City Council member Art Shad, plans to upgrade Hendricks Avenue near San Marco have been delayed by at least a year.
Originally slated for completion by the end of 2004, the project likely won’t resume until after the Super Bowl in 2005.
“It wasn’t an easy thing to do and we’re all definitely disappointed,” said Shad of the decision that came late last week. “However, after meeting with the mayor’s office for over 45 minutes and going over all our options, we agreed it was the right thing to do at this time if we wanted to get the job done properly. Mayor [John] Peyton has made the right decision.”
When it resumes, the project will still incorporate resurfaced and widened roads, repaired sidewalks and improved drainage, along with newly added palm trees and bike lanes along Hendricks from Mitchell Avenue to Prudential Drive.
“That’s the plan, and it won’t change,” said Susie Wiles of the mayor’s office. “It’s just that this project is very complicated and they mayor wanted to be assured it could be completed within the time frame that was originally decided on. Additionally, there was a lot of concern that we wouldn’t be finished in time for Super Bowl.”
Shad agreed, saying there were several more factors leading up to the decision to temporarily halt construction efforts.
“We had a lot of things to consider,” he said of the delay. “The lowest bid that came back to us from a contractor was about 30 percent higher than we were willing to pay.”
Wiles confirmed the lowest bid, one of only two, eclipsed the original $4.5 million budget by nearly $2 million dollars.
“We were hoping get to at least five bids,” said Shad.
On the slim number of contractors willing to make a bid, Shad speculated the time crunch associated with finishing the project before the Super Bowl may have been “too intimidating.”
“It’s a high profile project because the whole world is going to be watching Jacksonville around that time,” he said. “If you’re the reason behind any delays, you’re not going to want your company’s name on everyone’s television screen.
“After the game, when there isn’t going to be so much scrutiny, I think more people will be willing to make a bid and for a much more reasonable price.”
Shad said delays were unofficially expected due to the complexity of the project, coupled with relatively long stretch of time since work was last performed on Hendricks Avenue.
“It’s been a while since any major work was done and I could see us getting in there, and finding out things are a lot worse than we expected,” he said. “That’s something you should consider.”
Minor work, described as a “beautification project” by Wiles, will continue for the next few months.
“We’re not just going to leave it looking like it does right now for the next year,” she said. “The plan is to go in and do some sidewalk resurfacing and curb repair. We’ll go in, full scale, immediately after the [Super Bowl.]”
Wiles said the Hendricks Avenue delay would in no way mirror the well-publicized halt on the Main Street project in Springfield.
“Absolutely not,” she said. “The plan is in place and it will go forward. The mayor just wants to make sure it is handled appropriately before we proceed.”