Streetscape Bids Due November; Estimated Cost Is $1 Million

Earlier in the year, Nyack officials cast out to contractors in order to secure a bid for the Main Street Streetscape project, a plan to overhaul the road's infrastructure.

The project will focus on Main Street from Broadway to Franklin Street; the current sidewalks will be disposed of and replaced by colored and textured concrete walkways. Also, new curbs will be installed, the roads will be milled and resurfaced and the street lights and drainage system updated.

Now, the time to choose a contractor is approaching—bids are due Thursday, Nov. 18.

James Politi, the Village Administrator met with other officials and community members late last week and discussed the bid process. The village knows approximately what to expect, he noted.

"The cost will run somewhere between $700,000 and $1 million," Politi said. This included labor, equipment and incidentals, he added.

In the past, bids came in too pricey; around $1.6 million. The village has asked contractors to list ancillary elements—like benches and flower planters—seperately this time around.

And Nyack will not shoulder the cost alone—some $180,000 remains from the Community Block and Development Grant awarded to the village earlier in the year.

Politi noted the timeframe for the project is intentional.

"Hopefully we'll get hungry contractors looking for spring work," he said.

Business owners and community organizers present at the meeting—like Chamber of Commerce president Carlo Peligrini and ACADA's president John Dunnigan—expressed concern that the overhaul will impede local merchants. Streets will be closed, and certain parking areas rendered unusable.

"How the project will affect businesses—and the community—will be discussed at a later date," Politi said.

One idea brought up? Stimulate business by making light of the street closings and introducing a "backdoors of Nyack" campaign, where residents and patrons enter stores through the often unseen back entrances.

After Nov. 18, interested individuals can pick up copies of the submitted contracts at the Village Clerk's Office for $150 apiece.

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Correction: Originally, this story incorrectly stated that the the village had cut ancillary elements of the project. The error has been remedied.