Town prepares for beach bids again

The town of Longboat Key received no bids April 16 for its summer beach project. One month later, the town is putting the project out to bid again in the hopes of landing a bid from a sand-dredging company.

On April 16, the town only received one letter, explaining why the dredging company chose not to respond. Public Works Director Juan Florensa said after calling the dredge companies, he was informed the companies didn’t bid because they were concerned about bid language that stated sand couldn’t be scraped past a certain level. The town has altered the bid language in the hopes of attracting some bids this time.

If the town receives a bid it accepts, the project, which was scheduled to begin in July, could be pushed back 30 to 60 days.

The beach project will place sand at the Broadway beach access to Gulfside Road, and from The Islander condominiums to the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort. The town is also trying to get permits to place an additional 55,000 cubic yards of sand in two other places on the Key

Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].