Rec playground goes to bid - again

By COURTNEY LAMDIN | Staff Writer
courtney@miltonindependent.com

In a slight case of déjà vu, the town of Milton again asked for bids for Middle
Road Park playground equipment after discrepancies arose with the approved
vendor, Recreation coordinator Kym Duchesneau said.

The Selectboard approved a contract with Kentucky-based Earthscapes in March for $61,010, including installation. After some issues nailing down the final price, Duchesneau said the town decided to request more proposals.

“Rather than continue to go back and forth, we decided to be fair and rebid the project,” Duchesneau said. “We would just start over with a clean slate.”

The town received nine bids, which Duchesneau is now sorting through. She said she hasn’t prepared a recommendation for the Selectboard’s hopeful approval
on June 6.

Many of the new bids include plans of the same size and scope as Earthscapes’
plan; the company also bid again in this round, Duchesneau said.

“The goal is to have a large, older kids’ structure and then a small toddler structure and a few free-standing things,” she said.

She doesn’t expect the rebid to hold up playground construction too much and aimed for a July start date.

“It’s going to be happening this summer, like 99 percent sure,” Duchesneau said. “You can never say definitely, but our goal is for it to happen this summer.”

The project will be funded by the “half-penny for parks” item on the 2009 ballot, a state grant matched with half-penny funds and capital improvement funds, if needed, she said.