CDOT Selects I-25/Cimarron Design-Build Contractor
At $116.1 million, this will be the second largest highway construction project in the Pikes Peak region since COSMIX (Colorado Springs Metropolitan Expansion) – the reconstruction of I-25, was completed in 2008. More than 150,000 vehicles travel through the interchange daily, making it one of the region’s busiest.
Contractor team selection was a lengthy process, with three teams shortlisted in May 2014. The shortlisted teams were then asked to provide proposals through the Request for Proposal (RFP) process. In addition to Kraemer/TSH, proposals were received from the teams of Flatiron Constructors, Inc./Figg Engineering Group, and Parsons Corporation/Wildcat Construction Co., Inc.
“All the proposals were incredibly thorough, creative and exceeded the expectations of the established project goals,” said CDOT Regional Transportation Director Karen Rowe. “In the end, and following a rigorous selection process, it came down to the team with the best technical proposal and the one providing the most improvement for the interchange and the surrounding transportation network. Any of the three teams would do an outstanding job for us, but one emerged as the frontrunner in this area because they provided the best value and response for meeting the project’s goals.”
Those goals are:
1. Maximize overall safety, capacity and operation of the interchange and the surrounding transportation network within the Project budget.
2. Complete project construction to be fully operational by December 1, 2017.
3. Minimize impacts and inconvenience to the community, motorists, businesses, downtown and the public during construction.
4. Achieve an aesthetically-pleasing design compatible with current and future amenities and enhancements in and around the interchange.
Once a contract with the Kraemer/TSH team is finalized, a Notice to Proceed will be issued, and design work will get underway. A ground breaking marking the start of construction is expected this spring. One of the requirements of CDOT and project stakeholders is the project be operationally complete by Dec. 1, 2017.
“This is a complicated project,” added Rowe. “Construction will impact numerous citizens, businesses, industries, and community interests. CDOT has stressed through the project goals that while meeting the completion date is important, so is minimizing impacts.”
Construction will begin west of I-25, with utility relocation, and bridge and embankment work. The intent is to complete as much work as possible prior to significantly impacting traffic along I-25 in early 2016.
“The design-build contractor selection process required a tremendous amount of work and interaction between the project partners of the Federal Highway Administration, the City of Colorado Springs, El Paso County, the state Transportation Commission, CDOT and numerous community stakeholders,” said Rowe. “It was a long, but successful process to reach this milestone.”
Funding is from a variety of federal, state and local sources, including:
- CDOT Responsible Acceleration of Maintenance and Partnerships (RAMP) funds
- CDOT Regional Priority Program (RPP) funds
- CDOT Bridge Replacement, FASTER Safety and Resurfacing funds
- City of Colorado Springs local match funds
- El Paso County local match funds
Edward Kraemer & Sons, Inc., (Kraemer) is a privately held general contractor with more than 100 years of highway and bridge construction experience headquartered in Plain, Wisconsin. Its Colorado regional office is located in Castle Rock. The company has successfully constructed numerous major infrastructure projects throughout Colorado including the Powers Boulevard Design-Build project, Woodmen Road widening and Woodmen/Academy Blvd. interchange project, Denver US 6 Bridges reconstruction project, Idaho Springs Westbound I-70 Twin Tunnels reconstruction project, Dotsero “green” bridge replacement project on the I-70 frontage road over the Colorado River, and Castle Rock I-25/US-85 connection project, to name a few.
Tsiouvaras Simmons Holderness (TSH) is a Colorado-based engineering design firm founded in 2005 to serve the Colorado Transportation industry. TSH currently has 60 employees who work exclusively in Colorado on transportation projects providing bridge, highway, traffic and hydraulic design along with construction management services. The firm has successfully completed several large complex projects in Colorado including Powers Boulevard Design-Build, Denver Peña Blvd. Bridges and US285 construction projects, I-70/Dotsero Interchange, Denver’s I-25/Speer to 20th/15th Street Bridge reconstruction, and Trinidad I-25 Viaduct, to name a few.
