Norris still looking for bidders

October 18, 2023 by G. Chambers Williams III

No one has bid yet on several construction/renovation projects authorized by the Norris City Council in August and September, including replacing most of the firehouse roof and the exterior siding on the library, and building a new pavilion for the Oak Road Park.

City Manager Adam Ledford told the council during last week’s October council meeting that the city might need to expand its advertising for bids on the roof and pavilion jobs.

But he asked for and received the council’s OK to try to hire a contractor directly for the library siding replacement.

He said that job most likely would cost less than the $25,000 limit the city has on spending for capital projects without first seeking competitive bids.

The council did approve a resolution to enter into a contract with Pave Grade & Aggregate, Inc., for $167,764 for repaving all of Butternut Drive and the first 2,200 feet of Hickory Trail from its intersection with Butternut.

That project will not include curbs, as the city had hoped. The contractor bid a surprising $600,000 to add curbs to the project.

Council members also approved the low bid of $30,227 for a Can-Am side-by-side all-terrain vehicle for the Norris Police Department.

The vehicle will be used primarily for patrols of the Norris Municipal Watershed, a 2,400-acre natural wooded area given to the city by the Tennessee Valley Authority. It has numerous trails for hiking, horseback riding, and cycling.

There were two bids for the side-by-side purchase, and the Cam-Am model – which the Police Department preferred – came in at the lowest price.

As for the siding replacement for the library – also known as the McNeeley Building – the city has advertised for bids twice, and has never received a response.

Ledford said the project apparently is too small to attract any bidders, but that he might be able to find someone to do the work under a direct purchase.

The council in September authorized the seeking of bids for replacement of the rear section of the roof of the Norris Public Safety building, which houses the fire and police departments, to stop water leaks during storms that are drenching fire trucks and other firefighting equipment.

The work also is supposed to include new gutters to handle runoff from the new roof, which will be a standard gabled roof to replace the current flat one.

Some estimates have suggested the roof project could cost $100,000 or more.

Still under consideration are long-term plans for the building.

Ledford said in September that there is a possibility that the Fire Department could take over the entire building, and the city could find or build new quarters for the Police Department.

He said that with the police giving up their space in the building, the Fire Department would have meeting and training space, but that more storage space would still be needed. He suggested that storage space could be created by replacing a shed at the rear of the building with a new, larger structure.

Also in the September meeting, the council authorized Ledford to seek bids for the replacement of the Oak Road Park picnic pavilion. The new pavilion would be slightly larger than the present one, which is in poor condition.

But that project will now be advertised again, in hopes of attracting a bidder the second time around. The project’s small scope likely deterred anyone from bidding, city officials said.

In other business Monday, Oct. 9, the council:

• Gave a positive annual review of Ledford as city manager, a job he has held for just over a year. A cost-of-living salary increase of 3% was approved by the council.

• Voted to hire Martin Hennessee as director of the Norris Little Theatre’s production of a show next year in observance of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the city.

• Approved a contract for $252,700 with Cannon & Cannon, Inc., consulting engineers of Knoxville for continuation of surveying, engineering design, bidding, construction administration, and construction inspection services for a sanitary sewer rehabilitation project, which has been mandated by the Tennessee Health Department’s environmental division.