A Tempe firm has submitted the apparent low bid to construct the first of three Interstate 40 Traffic Interchanges (TI) in Kingman. Six companies were plan holders but only four of them formally bid for the West Kingman Beale Street TI.
The Fisher Sand & Gravel Co. bid of $106.5-million is about 9% below the $115-million state estimate. Other bids opened in Phoenix on Friday include:
$123.4-million from FNF Construction, Inc. Tempe, $143.7-million from Granite Construction Company, Tucson and $168-million from Scottsdale-based Pulice Construction, Inc.
ADOT expects analysis of submissions will lead to bid award in the spring, followed by a 2-year construction campaign.
The goal of the infrastructure upgrade is to provide free flowing connection for I-40 and US 93 motorists between Phoenix and Las Vegas without having to stop at intersection ramps. The improvements also aim to accommodate increased traffic volume, reduce congestion and avoid backups that occur more frequently during busy travel periods.
“ADOT has monitored the increasing traffic growth and congestion in west Kingman that has occurred over the years,” the agency website said. “The traffic volume is more than the current diamond interchange is designed to accommodate.”
The selected contractor will handle Phase 1 of the project, first constructing the Phoenix to Las Vegas directional ramps. Other directional ramps linking Las Vegas and California will be Phase 2 with a timetable to be dictated by future traffic volume and available funding.
The other two Kingman I-40 TI projects involve the Kingman Crossing, led by Kingman Regional Medical Center and the Rancho Santa Fe TI, led by the City of Kingman and private sector partner KDP Manager.
The state of the Kingman-KDP Manager partnership, bound by a Development Agreement (DA), has been rocky over time and is currently quite fuzzy.
The Council conducted lengthy executive session discussions of the DA or the project in both January and February. There was another hour-long behind closed door discussion at the Feb. 21 Council meeting.
The Council said nothing and took no action after each executive session, leaving a growingly curious public looking for enlightenment.
