Resurfacing contract including Pala Mesa roads to be rebid

A contract to resurface county-maintained roads, including seven in Pala Mesa, will be rebid.

A 5-0 San Diego County Board of Supervisors vote July 31 authorized the advertisement for bid and subsequent award of a construction contract to use regular asphalt slurry seal. The county’s Department of Public Works had hoped to use rubberized emulsion asphaltic slurry, but the lack of bids within the county’s budgeted amount led to the decision to rebid the contract with regular slurry seal.

The contract is structured with a base bid, or minimum locations, consisting of 23 road segments totaling 9.64 miles. The base bid includes 0.11 miles of Via Almonte, 0.38 miles of Via Altamira, 0.19 miles of Via Belmonte, 0.02 miles of Via Inca, 0.06 miles of Via Serra, 0.20 miles of Via de Todos Santos, and 0.05 miles of Via Tala. Six additive alternatives, or clusters of locations which can be added to the contract should funding permit, bring the total potential amount to 24.72 miles.

The contract has a $2,150,000 estimated cost, including contingencies and administration expenses. It will be funded by $1,000,000 from the Highway User Tax Account derived from the sales tax on gasoline, a $1,000,000 balance in the county’s road fund, and a $150,000 developer agreement.

The county maintains nearly 2,000 miles of roads. The county’s Department of Public Works uses a pavement management system which includes field review, mechanical data, and citizen and community input to prioritize road rehabilitation projects. Visual assessments are conducted to determine the extent and type of cracking or other surface defects, and pavement management software validates and categorizes road surface distress.

On February 6 the county supervisors authorized the initial contract while appropriating the final $1,150,000 for the project. Two bids were submitted and were opened on May 9. One of the submittals did not meet the bid requirements and was deemed non-responsive while the other bid was 65 percent above the county’s estimate. The advantage of rubberized emulsion asphaltic slurry was evaluated against the cost issues. Rubberized paving tends to last longer and reduces noise, but a slurry seal layer can be applied on roads with minor cracking and otherwise without significant surface damage.

The road resurfacing on a countywide basis is scheduled to begin in fall 2013 and be complete in summer 2014.