Illinois Tollway awards construction and professional engineering services contracts

Downers Grove, Ill. — The Illinois Tollway Board of Directors approved five new construction contracts and six new professional engineering service contracts totaling $53.7 million at its May meeting.

“The contracts approved today will allow us to make good on our commitment to deliver Move Illinois projects on schedule and within budget and keep our system in a state of good repair,” said Illinois Tollway Executive Director Greg Bedalov. “These investments also will allow the Illinois Tollway to sustain job opportunities and help support a strong transportation network for the region.”

More than $160 million in construction and professional service contracts have been approved by the Tollway Board so far in 2017, as part of the sixth year of the Tollway’s 15-year, $14 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future.

To date, more than $4.6 billion has been invested by the Illinois Tollway since the Move Illinois Program began in 2012, with more than $1.1 billion of that total committed to small, diverse and veteran-owned firms. In addition, the capital program has created or sustained an estimated 51,640 total jobs as of April 2017.

May construction contracts awarded include:

• A $4.8 million contract to Lorig Construction Co., Des Plaines, IL, for improvements on the Tri-State Tollway (I-94) near Grand Avenue including barrier wall, lighting, pavement marking and signage.
• A $4.7 million contract to The Bowa Group Inc. Chicago, IL, for data center renovations at the Tollway’s Downers Grove headquarters.
• A $2.1 million contract to Fence Masters Inc., Chicago Heights, IL, for right-of-way fence installation on I-90 between the Elgin Toll Plaza and the Kennedy Expressway.
• A $1.4 million contract to Foundation Mechanics LLC, Des Plaines, IL, for landscaping, grading and drainage improvements on the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) between Illinois Route 31 and the Kennedy Expressway.
• A $1.3 million contract to E.R. Bakey Inc., Carpentersville, IL, for parking lot improvements at the Tollway’s Downers Grove headquarters.

May professional engineering services contract awards include:

• A $25 million contract to CH2M Hill Inc. / Knight E/A Inc., Chicago, IL, for environmental impact statement and related reports for the Illinois Route 53/120 Project.
• A $4 million contract to Engineering Services Group Inc., Aurora, IL, for administration and support for the Tollway’s facilities Job Order Contracting Program.
• A $3.9 million contract to Environmental Design International Inc., Chicago, IL, for design services for maintenance facilities improvements.
• A $2.5 million contract to J.A. Watts Inc., Chicago, IL, for design and construction management services for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) improvements systemwide.
• A $2 million contract to SPAAN Tech Inc., Chicago, IL, for construction management services as needed for work on I-90.
• A $2 million contract to DLZ Illinois Inc., Chicago, IL, for construction management services as needed for sign structure and retaining wall repairs systemwide.

The contracts approved in May include four prime consultants, one prime contractor, 22 subconsultants and two subcontractors that are certified as disadvantaged, minority- and women-owned business enterprise (D/M/WBE) firms and one prime contractor, five subconsultants and one subcontractor that are certified veteran-owned firms. Commitments for D/M/WBE participation range from 20 to 95 percent per contract, and commitments for veteran participation range from 1 to 7.5 percent per contract. Of the $53.7 million awarded for these contracts, nearly $23 million, or 43 percent, is committed to small, veteran-owned or disadvantaged firms.

Illinois Tollway professional engineering services contracts are awarded through the qualifications-based selection process (Illinois Public Act 87-673 {30 ILCS 535/1-535/80}) Architectural, Engineering and Land Surveying Qualifications-Based Selection Act), which requires state agencies to select professional architects, engineers and surveyors on the basis of demonstrated competence and professional qualifications.

Construction contracts for Illinois Tollway projects are competitively bid under the rules of the Illinois Procurement Code. As part of the process, contractors’ bid submissions for construction work advertised by the Tollway are opened and read aloud during public bid opening meetings, which are also broadcast live on the Tollway’s website. Following an agency review process, the lowest, responsible and responsive bid is presented to the Illinois Tollway Board of Directors for review and approval.

The Illinois Tollway provides detailed information about current Tollway construction contracts through the Construction Contract Tracker on the Tollway’s website at www.illinoistollway.com. Contractors and consultants can also access resources online to help them learn about how to do business with the Tollway, including construction bid-letting schedules, professional service bulletins, manuals and construction bid calendars. These resources can be found in the “Doing Business” section of the Tollway’s website.