by KATE SHUNNEY
The West Virginia Department of Transportation has received construction bids from nine companies vying to build a 3.4-mile, four-lane U.S. 522 bypass around Berkeley Springs. Bid letting ended at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, September 15.
Bids ranged from $59.8 million to $73.2 million. Five of the construction companies that submitted bids are based in West Virginia.
Trumball Construction submitted the lowest bid of $59,822,690.44 for the bypass project. Trumbull Construction is part of Pennsylvania family of companies that specializes in heavy contracting, with offices in Pittsburgh, Exton and New Galilee, Pa.
A.L.L. Construction, Inc. submitted a bid of $61,999,034.56. A.L.L. Construction is a heavy, highway construction company based out of Mount Storm, W.Va.
Golden Triangle Construction Company is a heavy/highway contracting company based out of Imperial, Pa. Golden Triangle submitted a bid of $62,809,254.96.
Triton Construction, Inc. is a heavy/highway contractor specializing in roads, bridges, airports, water and wastewater projects. They are based in Saint Albans, W.Va. Triton submitted a bid of $63,859,300 to build the bypass.
J.F. Allen Company is a highway, paving and quarry company based out of Buckhannon, W.Va. J.F. Allen bid $66,499,000 on the bypass project.
Vecellio & Grogan, Inc. is a heavy/highway contractor that serves the Mid-Atlantic region and is based out of Beckley, W.Va. Vecellio & Grogan submitted a bid of $67,929,964.32 for the bypass.
Kokosing Construction Company, Inc. is a heavy highway construction company based out of Westerville, Ohio. The company operates offices in South Charleston, W.Va. and Morgantown along with several more in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Kokosing bid $68,711,350 on the project.
Orders Construction Company, Inc. is a heavy highway and bridge construction company based out of Saint Albans, W.Va. Orders submitted a bid of $69,651,536.36.
Walsh Construction Company, LLC is a Chicago-based heavy highway, bridge and infrastructure construction company with regional offices in Washington, D.C. and Pittsburgh. Walsh submitted the highest project bid in the amount of $73,180,728.12.
“The West Virginia Division of Highways is reviewing the bids and hopes to award contracts for these projects soon,” Transportation officials said in a press release about several state bid lettings on Tuesday.
The Berkeley Springs Bypass project will be funded through the state’s Roads to Prosperity highway program, through state road bonds approved under a special state constitutional amendment passed in 2017.
Highway officials have not said when they will award the construction contract.
Bid documents estimated construction work would begin this fall and the bypass would be complete by November of 2023.
The Division of Highways has not purchased all of the properties needed for the bypass route.