City of Piedmont announces intent to award pool construction contract; PRFO fundraising campaign remains underway
November 21, 2022
The City of Piedmont has issued a notice of intent to award a contract for construction of the new community pool. Staff could bring a contract to City Council for approval as soon as December 5th, 2022, with construction anticipated to begin early in 2023.
The City received four bids for construction of the new pool on November 16th, 2022. The low base bid of $21.35 million is line with construction cost estimates and anticipated available funding – a combination of Measure UU bond proceeds, private donations from an ongoing Piedmont Recreational Facilities Organization (PRFO) capital campaign, as well as ongoing efforts to secure funding specific to full electrification of the facility.
“I’m thrilled to have reached this milestone,” said City Administrator Sara Lillevand. “After working on this project since 2015, when we began the master planning process for a new aquatics center, it is deeply gratifying to be in a position to move forward with construction of a modern facility that meets the athletic and recreational aquatic needs of our community.”
While the bid is in line with previous cost estimates and expectations, the project continues to face a funding shortfall. To close the gap, the City is partnering with PRFO to raise $2.1 million for the completion of the new community pool as designed. This capital campaign, which began in August 2022, hopes to build on the success of previous PRFO fundraising in support of Hampton Park and the Corey Reich Tennis Center.
“Time and again, the people of Piedmont have shown tremendous generosity in supporting the City’s efforts to create modern recreational spaces for our whole community to enjoy,” said Mayor Teddy Gray King. “A new aquatics facility in the center of town will bring joy and delight for generations to come. The City is grateful to PRFO for its support to bring this remarkable project across the finish line.”
This was the second round of bidding for construction of the project. Previously, the City received bids from two pre-qualified contractors on September 26th , 2022. Both bids exceeded the project team’s estimates by more than 15%, with the lowest bid coming in at $24.6 million. Expecting that increased competition would result in a bid that better aligned with the City’s resources, the City Council unanimously approved staff’s recommendation to reject both bids and re-open the project for bidding to a wider range of contractors on October 17th, 2022. The second round yielded four bids, two of which are lower than both bids from the first round.
Primary funding for the pool replacement project comes from Measure UU, approved by Piedmont voters in November 2020. Measure UU authorized the sale of $19.5 million in general obligation bonds to fund a new community pool. The new community pool is anticipated to include a 27-meter competition pool with a diving well, a 3,177 square foot activity pool with three 25-yard lap lanes, and a single-story building featuring locker rooms, an indoor multi-purpose room, two gender neutral changing rooms, and a rooftop pavilion.
The City of Piedmont and the Piedmont City Council are grateful to the community for their continued support for the new community pool project. For more information on the project, visit piedmont.ca.gov/newpool. For information on the PRFO capital campaign, visit prfo.org/piedmont-community-pool.