KEARNY –
The Kearny Municipal Utilities Authority last Wednesday awarded a contract for $4,597,890 to Coppola Services of Ringwood for the renovation of its Kearny Point and Harrison Ave. pump stations.
Of four bids submitted, ranging up to a high of $4,744,000, Coppola’s was the lowest, according to KMUA Executive Director Kevin O’Sullivan. One bid was tossed out as deficient, he added.
O’Sullivan said the work involves fixing pumps, bar screens and generators at both locations that were damaged by Superstorm Sandy in October 2012. “It’s an overhaul of all mechanical parts,” he said.
O’Sullivan said the contract specifications call for completion of the job within two years. The contractor may choose to work on both sites at the same time or in staggered phases, he added.
While the repairs are proceeding, both pump stations “will remain fully operational through a bypass system,” he said.
The Kearny Point station is located in the rear of the KMUA offices at 39 Central Ave. while the Harrison Ave. facility is at 1802 Harrison, just east of the N.J.Turnpike and near the U.S. postal facility.
Financing for the project is earmarked from two primary sources: the federal Environmental Infrastructure Trust fund and the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), with the balance coming from the KMUA, according to O’Sullivan.
Meanwhile, O’Sullivan said that work on the KMUA’s new offices is virtually completed but he said that the general contractor, Daskal LLC of Wallington, is awaiting a final inspection by the roof sub-contractor before a 20-year warranty agreement can be issued.
The job was awarded to Daskal for $680,900 in April 2013 and the KMUA staff has been operating from a temporary trailer since Labor Day 2013. A few months ago, O’Sullivan said the job was “behind schedule” and had been progressing “slower than anticipated.”
– Ron Leir
