LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday gave unanimous support for a contract to carry out an asphalt improvement project for the Lampson Field airport runway.
Lake County Public Works Director Scott De Leon asked the board to award the project for the airport runway asphalt slurry seal rehabilitation project to Maxwell Asphalt Inc. of Salt Lake City.
The contract totals approximately $1,005,710. De Leon said the project is fully funded, with 90 percent of the funding coming from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Airport Improvement Program funds, a 5 percent contribution from Caltrans and a 5 percent local contribution.
“The scope of the project is to make minor repairs to the existing asphalt, including crack repairs, place a slurry seal for pavement preservation over the runway and taxiway, and apply new pavement stripes and markings,” De Leon’s written report to the board explained.
He told the board on Tuesday morning, “This project’s been a long time coming. We had hoped to build this last year but the Mendocino Complex fires resulted in a closure of the airport and we just really felt that that was going to be too much of a burden on the businesses, to close the airport again later in the summer.”
De Leon said his department put the project off at this point, and bid it out a couple of times, initially receiving no bids on the first found.
Then Maxwell Asphalt Inc. submitted the only bid. De Leon said his staff did some research on the company, which he said has gotten really good reviews on the quality of its work. He said he was excited that the company had decided to come to Lake County to do the project.
“This is a top priority project for us in our capital improvement plan and we’re excited to deliver it,” he said.
De Leon said the project will result in some intermittent closures and then a closure for about a week and a half. He said they are working with operators at the airport so they can be ready for those interruptions.
“Once it’s done, we’ll be good for another seven years with our pavement,” he said.
De Leon noted that the bids came in higher than what he had budgeted with the FAA Airport Improvement Funds.
However, the FAA agreed to fund the balance, for an additional $300,000.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier said he was glad the FAA stepped in, noting the project cost also had come in just under the engineer’s estimate.
He added that the project is one of the top three priorities for economic development.
Supervisor Moke Simon said the project has been a long time coming, adding that there also is a pilots’ lounge project under way at the airport.
Board Chair Tina Scott said De Leon is staying very busy at the airport.
Simon, who added that last year’s fire really slowed down the project, moved to approve it, with Sabatier seconding and the board approving the motion 5-0.
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Supervisors award bid for Lampson Field airport asphalt improvement project
- Elizabeth Larson
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