Resolution 180-16 authorized the construction of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) building for $83,100.
The contract was awarded to Hull-Vicci Construction Corporation from Cranford, which has recently done work for Cranford, Clark Township, and Church of the Assumption.
During the municipal budget workshops that were open to the public earlier this year, the request for a new OEM building was made by the police department and approved in the 2016 municipal budget.
The contract was awarded upon the recommendation of the borough’s engineering firm, Neglia Engineering. Representative Thomas Solfaro explained that the project had previously gone out for bid twice and was rejected each time due to being over the allotted budget for the building.
He further stated, “By state law we’re allowed to negotiate a price and the negotiation was very simple. We solicited quotes from outside vendors who did not submit originally. By law we had to ask the original vendors who submitted to also re-submit if they chose to. One chose not to, one said sure and they dropped their price by about five percent but if you see the price that’s on there, it’s roughly $83,000. It’s more than half of what the bids we received now on the open market.”
The OEM building will be located behind the Roselle Park Municipal Complex in the rear of the municipal parking lot located at the corner of Westfield Avenue and Walnut Street. It is used to store emergency and other public safety related equipment to protect them from the elements.