Town Council votes to begin undergrounding project

Good news! Phase 1 of the Undergrounding of Utilities Project is moving forward. The Underground Utilities Task Force recommended approval of the construction contracts for Phase 1 and the Town Council voted to award the contracts this week.

Construction for Phase 1 is scheduled to begin this summer. Property owners in Phase 1 will soon be receiving information about next steps, expectations, and timelines for the project.

Phase 1 is broken up into two sub-phases; Phase 1 North (properties north of Onondaga Avenue to the Inlet) and Phase 1 South (properties south of Sloan’s Curve).  The Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) for Phase 1 came in at approximately $10.4 million dollars.  The GMP is $500,000 less than what the Town’s Undergrounding Master Plan projected the cost would be.   The Town is using the Construction Manager at Risk project delivery method to provide more accountability, coordination, and responsiveness during the project. The Construction Manager for Phase 1 North is Burkhardt Construction and the Construction Manager for Phase 1 South is Whiting-Turner. Both firms have years of experience in managing large construction projects for the Town.

The Underground Utilities Task Force recommended, and the Town Council approved, the use of interim financing through a line of credit to fund Phase 1 of the Undergrounding Project. Long term financing will be funded using General Obligation Bonds paid back through special assessments, the methodology that was approved by the voters in the 2016 referendum.

For more information about the Undergrounding project, please visit www.Undergrounding.info or follow the project on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/UndergroundPalmBeach/