Manatee commission awards Fort Hamer Bridge contract to lowest bidder

MANATEE -- Fort Hamer Bridge came one step closer to becoming a reality Tuesday when the Manatee County Commission unanimously selected the lowest bidder for the bridge's construction.

Johnson Brothers Corp. was awarded the $32.7 million construction contract. The Hillsborough County-based company had submitted a bid of $32,690,155.48 with a 630 calendar days for completion, which was the lowest of the seven bids submitted to the county earlier this month.

"We are at the point now where we are going to pull the trigger and get the project built," commission chairwoman Betsy Benac said.

Manatee Public Works Director Ron Schulhofer said the county is anticipating work to begin on March 16 and taking two years to complete. Johnson Brothers Corp. will complete construction of the bridge and additional improvements along Fort Hamer and Upper Manatee River roads.

The bridge will span the Manatee River connecting two roads: Upper Manatee River Road on the south side and Fort Hamer Road on the north. When completed, the bridge will create a north-south alternative to Interstate 75 and provide a more direct route for Parrish residents headed to Lakewood Ranch.

Since there was public opposition to the bridge, it cost $2.5 million extra, Schulhofer said.

Commissioner Robin DiSabatino said the bridge "already cost us a lot of money and we need to move on."

"We are trying to address the issues of connectivity and mobility," she said. "This is just one of the difficult pills that we have to swallow."

Claire Aronson, Manatee County reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7024 or at caronson@bradenton.com. Follow her on Twitter@Claire_Aronson.

This story was originally published March 1, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Manatee commission awards Fort Hamer Bridge contract to lowest bidder ."