New York – By the end of March, New York City will restart more than 1,700 capital construction projects totaling $17 billion. In March 2020, the city halted work on design services for water, sewer, and infrastructure projects due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

During a March 1 press conference, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Senior Adviser Lorraine Grillo said the city’s pandemic recovery effort would include planning and procurement for new schools, major library projects, bicycle and pedestrian safety, park upgrades, and repairs to sewer and wastewater management infrastructure. 

Other projects will include affordable housing construction as well as coastal resiliency and climate change initiatives. 

De Blasio and Grillo said the restart would provide opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses that have struggled during the pandemic.

Massachusetts – The state’s Operational Services Division (OSD) has scheduled several technology-related procurements throughout 2021 as contracts are set to expire.

A solicitation is set to start on March 5 for data and cyber security services, including information management, data security, and Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance.

Four statewide contracts for information technology (IT) and hardware services will be consolidated into one contract on June 30 that will cover desktops, laptops, Chromebooks, servers, storage solutions, computer supplies and accessories, and hardware-related services such as maintenance and integration.

In addition to state agencies and branches, other entities that may use this contract are cities, towns, districts, counties, school districts, public institutions of higher education, and public hospitals.

The state’s contract for IT staff augmentation overhead is set to expire on June 30, which will allow agencies to independently locate an individual they wish to retain without reliance on other statewide contracts.

A new contract for network services will replace four agreements that cover voice, connectivity/bandwidth, mobile communication, and managed services. Those contracts are set to expire on June 30.

California – The University of California (UC) health system announced its $3.75 billion plan to rebuild UC Davis Medical Center to meet state seismic requirements.

The preliminary plan calls for a new 16-story hospital building and five-story pavilion that would replace existing patient care facilities that must be demolished or decommissioned to meet state earthquake safety mandates.

When completed, the expanded hospital will contain 700 licensed beds, up from 625 today. But the square footage of the hospital will nearly double to accommodate a greater number of private rooms.

UC Davis plans to solicit extensive community input on the planned California Tower, including surrounding open space areas and opportunities for neighborhood connectivity with the campus.

The new tower facility will be on existing parking areas and fit within the medical center’s planned footprint. It will be built near the corner of 45th and X streets and include two additional helipads.

Part of the need for the additional facilities is the forced closure and demolition of older portions of the UC Davis Medical Center, which do not meet the state’s 2020 and 2030 seismic safety requirements. Demolition of the 1950s-era north and south hospital wing is slated to be completed in 2030.

Planning and design for the project is expected to take three years, with early construction efforts starting in late 2021 and detailed design phases continuing through 2023.

Minnesota – Gov. Tim Walz released his 2021 Local Jobs and Projects Plan that would invest $518.1 million in infrastructure projects across the state.

Funds would go to maintain existing buildings, invest in communities, and leverage available federal funds. Almost half of the proposed plan would support asset preservation projects at state agencies and higher education institutions.

Deferred maintenance needs for state agencies total more than $1.7 billion, thus nearly half of the governor’s 2021 capital budget will support asset preservation projects. His recommendation includes $43 million to make critical security upgrades to the Capitol Complex.

The plan features $100 million in Housing Infrastructure Bonds to preserve and build new housing opportunities across the state. Funds will be awarded through a competitive request for proposal process to private for-profit and nonprofit developers for supportive housing, preservation, and homeownership development including community land trusts, senior housing, and manufactured home park infrastructure.

More than $150 million in Redevelopment Appropriation Bonds would support rebuilding efforts in the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul in the areas damaged by civil unrest in May and June 2020.

Additionally, the plan recommends $10 million for Minnesota’s share of design and environmental work for a second daily Amtrak train between the Twin Cities, Milwaukee, and Chicago, including stops in Winona and Red Wing.

The plan would be funded by $240 million in general obligation bonds, $250 million in appropriation bonds, and an additional $28.3 million in general fund cash.

Louisiana – Construction on the 8.3-mile second phase of the LA 1 Relocated project is scheduled to be advertised for bids in October on the estimated $400 million elevated highway near Leeville.

Once complete, the project will provide an 18-mile, fully access controlled, elevated highway on a new location between Golden Meadow (LA 3235) and Port Fourchon (LA 3090). Four segments of the first phase are now complete and open to traffic, and the old movable bridge over Bayou Lafourche has been removed.

This project will replace the sinking highway by constructing one of the longest bridges in Louisiana and the Americas. When complete the LA 1 Bridge will be almost as long as the nearby Pontchartrain Bridge in New Orleans. The project is designed so that major portions can be constructed using “top-down” construction methods to protect sensitive wetlands and marshes.

Each year, tropical storms pose more of a threat to LA 1, which now often floods in low-level storms and strands coastal residents, tourists, and the oil industry workers.

Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $42.3 million in 86 distance learning and telemedicine infrastructure projects across the country.

USDA’s Distance Learning and Telemedicine grant program helps rural education and health-care entities remotely reach students, patients, and outside expertise.

The Morgan County Board of Education in West Virginia will receive $1 million to establish distance learning systems at six schools. The project is expected to help 2,232 students and 202 teachers in Morgan County.

Almost $1 million will go to the Morehouse School of Medicine to purchase interactive telecommunications, distance learning, and telemedicine equipment. Equipment will be installed in service hubs in two counties in west-central Georgia to provide a variety of health-care services to residents in the underserved rural areas of nine counties across the state.

North Country Hospital Center in Vermont will invest its $994,326 grant to establish telemedicine services to expand capacity through patient monitoring systems and telehealth carts.

Fort Lewis College will use its $950,060 grant to purchase and install instructional technology at four rural connectivity centers in La Plata and Conejos counties in Colorado, Apache County in Arizona, and San Juan County in New Mexico.

The University of Alabama will use a $916,948 grant to connect 23 ambulances and seven hospitals in eight rural counties in west-central Alabama. This project will create a network of ambulances equipped with telemedicine services to relay patient data to emergency physicians and provide more efficient care for patients.

The grant awards include $24 million provided through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act. In total, these investments will benefit 5 million rural residents.

Arizona – Gov. Doug Ducey announced $230 million in funding to support the Interstate 10 Gila River Bridge construction project and several road repaving efforts.

The funding comes from transportation dollars, including higher than anticipated revenue amid Arizona’s strong economic recovery, and federal COVID-relief funds.

Projects include:

The I-10 Gila River Bridge is the first step in completing the widening of a key commerce corridor. The project will rebuild and widen the I-10 bridge to three lanes in each direction over the Gila River and open opportunities to further widen I-10 in both directions. That project will start construction in 2022.

Road improvements will address rough conditions on more than 600 lane-miles of highways around the state, with nearly 400 of those lane-miles located in rural counties. These 19 projects are expected to be complete in 2022 and will reduce long-term maintenance costs and enhance safety.

Colorado – The Regional Transit District (RTD) board of directors approved a new transit-oriented development (TOD) policy to encourage the development of affordable housing on district-owned properties.

For RTD, the new policy gives staff needed flexibility when developers propose projects, for instance, on the surface parking lots adjacent to the station at Central Park or the similar swaths of asphalt at County Line.

The new TOD policy allows RTD staff the option to give developers a break by not requiring that parking spots be replaced on a one-to-one basis. In exchange for easing such requirements, the new policy allows RTD to set a non-binding goal that 35 percent of all housing developments on RTD property be priced as affordable, starting at 60 percent of median area incomes as a benchmark.

A shortage of affordable housing in Denver is at crisis levels. City of Denver figures show that the median income increased about 8 percent between 2015 and 2018, while rent increased 13 percent and the cost of homes jumped by 17 percent.

Pennsylvania – The state’s Department of Transportation (PennDOT) released the list of bridges under consideration for a public-private partnership (P3) program.

Nine bridges being reviewed for tolling through the PennDOT Pathways Major Bridge P3 Initiative are structures of substantial size that warrant timely attention and would require significant funds to rehabilitate or replace.

Additionally, these bridges were selected based on the feasibility of construction beginning in two to four years to maximize near-term benefits, and with the intention that their locations are geographically balanced to avoid impact to just one region.

Projects being considered, and for which a public involvement process begins this spring, include interstates:

Each bridge's project scope, surrounding roadway network, and traffic flow is being evaluated for inclusion in one or more project bundles to be advertised this spring. PennDOT is analyzing potential structures for project bundles to ensure fair, competitive, and local participation in the P3 procurement to replace these bridges.

PennDOT’s Office of Public-Private Transportation Partnerships issued a request for information (RFI) to understand the level of interest in a progressive P3 approach and policy positions to replace up to nine major bridges across the state.

RFI submissions are due no later than 11:59 p.m. EST March 12.

North Carolina – The Lexington City Council authorized a municipal project agreement to re-establish passenger rail service to the city by entering a project agreement with the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).

The agreement would bring passenger rail service to the city and involves a $41.3 million development plan that would construct two boarding platforms and renovate the historic freight depot.

Construction of a vehicle tunnel and railroad track upgrades are planned as well.

The city has been awarded a $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to construct the rail station and extend W. 5th Avenue under the railroad to Talbert Boulevard.

NCDOT is contributing $10.95 million to the project for construction and providing an additional $450,000 for design work.

Once final engineering and design is complete, and all federal requirements are met for release of funds, NCDOT will prepare all documents necessary to bid construction of the project.

Nebraska – Omaha Metro is embarking on a strategic planning and community input initiative that will culminate in a multi-year MetroNEXT enhancement strategy.

The plan will incorporate improvements to existing routes, new service types, and potential service expansion and will feature:

A series of three virtual public meetings is scheduled for March to present the plan.

Colorado – The cities of Loveland and Fort Collins issued a request for information (RFI) to obtain expressions of interest concerning development and partnership opportunities as part of the Airport Terminal Building Project at Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveland.

A variety of options, creative approaches, and partnership configurations are encouraged by the cities to best leverage their upcoming investment in the terminal project. These could include third-party partnership roles, such as equity/ownership positions, development, management/operations, naming rights/sponsorship, and/or use agreements.

Within the past year, the airport completed a development master plan that focuses on short-term capital projects, including a new terminal building. The plan recommends a two-gate, two-airline facility of 30,502 square feet to support forecasted future air carrier operations.

The Airport has recently received a $16.87 million federal grant as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which has been prioritized by the cities for the design and construction of a new terminal facility.

Design of the new terminal will take 14 to 16 months. If the Airport Commission decides to move forward with construction, the new facility will likely open in 2024.

California – Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Liana Bailey-Crimmins as state chief technology officer at the California Department of Technology and Richard “Rick” Klau as state chief technology innovation officer. Bailey-Crimmins has been chief information security officer at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System. Before that, she was the system’s chief health director and chief information officer. Klau most recently served as senior operating partner at a venture capital investment firm focused on technology companies.

Arizona – The Arizona Board of Regents named José Luis Cruz as the finalist for president of Northern Arizona University. If approved, he would succeed Rita Cheng who will step down to take a tenured faculty position. Cruz is the executive vice chancellor and university provost at The City University of New York. Previously, Cruz served as provost of California State University, Fullerton.

Florida – Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Simone Marstiller as secretary of Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration. She will take over for Acting Secretary Shevaun Harris who will transfer to the Department of Children and Families. Marstiller most recently served as the secretary of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.

Vermont – The South Burlington City Council selected Jessie Baker as the next city manager, effective June 1. She will succeed Kevin Dorn who is retiring. Baker is the city manager of Winooski. Before that, she was the assistant city manager in Montpelier.

Oklahoma – Gov. Kevin Stitt nominated Scott Mueller as Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development. Pending Senate confirmation, he will succeed outgoing Secretary Sean Kouplen. Mueller has served as the managing member of a holding company. Prior to that, he was the chief financial officer of a national investment banking practice.

Mary Scott Nabers, Publisher

Devin Monk, Editor

Government Contracting Pipeline, a publication of Strategic Partnerships, Inc., is a free, weekly newsletter detailing important happenings nationwide and the premier source for federal, state, and local government news and contracting opportunities.