January 14, 2019 – Acting on County Executive George Latimer’s proposal to improve the County’s capital project process, the County Board of Legislators have unanimously approved over $12M in needed infrastructure repairs.
Latimer said: “My Administration is focused on finding ways to both reduce the County’s existing backlog of capital projects as well as creating a process to eliminate future backlogs. To County residents, this will mean faster repairs to the roads we all travel every day in addition to real savings of tax dollars. As we all know, routine maintenance costs less in the long run over drastic repairs when disaster strikes.”
This new process improves the County’s capital project system in three ways:
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First, it allows for design and construction costs to be bonded together which will streamline the timeframe and counter any potential backlog from these two phases having separate bond acts;
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Second, this enhanced timeframe means that the project will be out to bid faster which will allow the projects to be ready for this year’s construction season – which is vastly different from the previous process used by the County; and
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Lastly, bidding on design and construction together makes the cost estimate much more realistic, eliminating the need to go back and add additional funds to any miscalculated projects or projects which – due to delay – have gone up in cost.
Board of Legislators Majority Whip MaryJane Shimksy, Chair of the Board's Public Works Committee, said: “The Board of Legislators' job in the capital project approval process is to ensure that the right projects get done, in the right order, and at the right price. In my nearly eight years as a legislator, I have decried the County's ever-rising capital project backlog. I look forward to continuing to work with the Administration and County departments to expedite our backlogged projects wherever appropriate.”
The projects voted on include:
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Act – BOND ACT – RB141 - $7M for Overhead Sign Structure Replacements
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Act – BOND ACT – RB187 - $700K for repairs to Old Saw Mill River Road in Mount Pleasant
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Act – BOND ACT – RB188 - $375K for repairs to Seven Bridges Road in New Castle
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Act – BOND ACT – RB189 - $1.8M for repairs to Westchester Avenue in White Plains
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Act – BOND ACT – RB191 - $275K for repairs to Union Avenue in Harrison
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Act – BOND ACT – RB192 - $1.25M for repairs to Long Ridge Road in Pound Ridge
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Act – BOND ACT – RB193 - $625K for repairs to Orchard Street in White Plains