Hardee County awards $372,115.80 bridge repair contract to Thomas Marine Construction

The Board of County Commissioners voted to award a construction contract valued at $372,115.80 to Thomas Marine Construction Inc. for repairs to Airport Bridge at Max Branch and the Sweetwater Bridges at Charlie Creek.

Assistant County Manager Chris Ciprian presented the results of the bid opening and staff’s recommendation. Ciprian said three bids were received and the engineer of record recommended the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, Thomas Marine Construction, for the bundled bridge-repair project. He described the northbound lane at Airport Road as already closed because undermining had compromised the approach; the repair work will use a chemical grouting method to inject grout into voids under the structure followed by targeted milling and resurfacing of approximately a 50-foot area within the travel lane.

Staff and commissioners discussed schedule and access: Ciprian said the contract anticipates a roughly three- to four-month construction period and that the county will schedule work to avoid fully closing the route because Airport Road is the only access to the county landfill. Funding for the repairs will come from a reallocation of Griffin Bridge repair funds this fiscal year; staff said they are also pursuing FDOT SIGP funding for Griffin Bridge and can fund that repair next fiscal year if needed.

Questions about procurement were answered: staff said the engineer of record prepared bid quantities and conducted an independent review to confirm responsiveness and responsibility; the engineer’s review ensures pricing aligns with quantities and technical feasibility, not simply the lowest dollar. The BOCC approved the award and authorized the county manager to execute the construction agreement.

Next step: staff will finalize the contract with Thomas Marine Construction and coordinate construction staging and resident notifications; staff will report progress and any schedule changes to the BOCC.