Craig Daily Press

Craig — If a recently approved project goes according to plan, Moffat County High School students will be parking on a new patch of asphalt this fall.

At a special meeting Thursday afternoon, the Moffat County School Board voted unanimously to approve a base bid of $612,547 bid from Connell Resources to replace the high school’s parking lot, thereby advancing the project a year ahead of schedule.

“Especially with the way things have gone in the last two to three months with the price of oil, (we thought) that it would be more cost advantageous for us to tackle this right now,” district finance director Mark Rydberg said.

A $29.5 million bond issue voters approved in November 2007 will pay for the project.

Starting July 28, crews are scheduled to begin the project. The existing parking lot will be removed to make way for its replacement.

Discarded asphalt from the existing parking lot can be reused for a variety of purposes, including covering rural driveways, said John Sattler, Diversified Consulting Solutions president.

A concrete sublayer will be poured after existing asphalt is removed, he said, creating a stable base for the future parking lot.

The high school’s south bus loop and entry way also is up for replacement, according to a memorandum from DCS, school district’s owner’s representative.

The project is scheduled for completion no later than Sept. 8.

The high school parking lot has been repaired in previous years, district facilities director Mike Taylor said, but it has never been replaced.

Taylor said he was satisfied with the School Board’s decision.

“I think it’s something that’s needed,” he said. “It’s a good solution.”

Advancing the project a year created additional time constraints for the school district to contend with. District officials responded by appealing to an emergency provision in school district rules.

“When bidding procedures are used, bids shall be advertised, when appropriate, in the local paper,” district policy reads.

However, the school district decided to forego traditional advertising methods, Rydberg said, and chose instead to contact contractors directly.

The school district invited two in-state companies to bid for the job: Connell Resources, a Fort Collins-based company, and Elam Construction, which has seven offices across the state, including one in Craig.

DCS officials considered the two companies “the most qualified local paving contractors, according to the memo.

DCS met with the two companies July 3 and set a bid submission deadline for 2 p.m. Thursday, according to the memo.

DCS received a final bid from Connell on Wednesday. After the Thursday deadline, however, Elam officials declined to bid due to “material supply shortage,” Sattler said.

Elam officials were unavailable for comment.