Emergency award granted to Kimley-Horn to extend Belmont Bridge contract 

There’s a new chapter in the long-running saga of Charlottesville’s replacement of the Belmont Bridge. According to a status report developed by city staff, the $38 million project was expected to be completed in January. (read the status report)

However contractor Kimley Horn was awarded an emergency contract on February 9 for “bridge construction services, engineering and inspection.”  According to a justification submitted on that day, the work is needed for public safety purposes. (read the justification letter)

“If the contract is not extended, demobilization will occur which will include removing protective barriers on the bridge,” reads the notice posted on the city’s website. “The first concern is the considerable area of fall hazards in the vicinity of pedestrian routes and public gathering areas.”

The notice goes on to say that under the new contract, new barriers will be put in place and “onlooker activity” will be monitored as the project nears completion. 

“The pavilion and nearby mall are frequented by gatherings of small children, to whom an unsecured construction site presents an attractive nuisance and dangerous environment,” the notice continues.

At the February 20, 2024 City Council meeting, City Manager Sam Sanders said the project is expected to be complete in June.

The new bridge is the third structure to span the railroad tracks with the second one having been completed in the early 1960’s. In September 2003, former Mayor Maurice Cox suggested it would be better to replace the bridge with something more pedestrian-friendly. For several years, staff pursued a plan to repair the bridge, but conditions had deteriorated by April 2009 when City Council agreed to proceed with a replacement.  

At that time, Council selected MMM Design to develop the bridge and the project had a cost estimate of $9 million. A public process kicked off in November 2010 but in early 2012 filmmaker Brian Wimer began a public campaign to challenge the need for a bridge. The University of Virginia School of Architecture had a school-wide project to come up with alternatives and the winning competition imagined no bridge at all. The now-defunct PLACE Design Task Force recommended the city study the option of an underpass, adding additional cost to the project. 

In July 2014, Council selected a replacement bridge anyway, but one with an enhanced pedestrian experience. However, a few months later, MMM Design went out of business and the project went dormant again while the bridge continued to deteriorate. In December 2016, Kimley Horn was hired to begin the process again. In August 2020, the project had a cost estimate of $31 million.  Council agreed to $5 million in capital funding in the adopted FY2021 budget and $2.5 million in the adopted FY2022 budget. The project got under construction in the summer of 2021.

The project is among several managed by the City of Charlottesville that are behind schedule. Three projects funded by the Virginia Department of Transportation in the first Smart Scale Round back in 2016 have not yet gone to construction but are in the engineering / right-of-way / and design phase. 

• East High Streetscape is now expected to be completed in December 2025
• Fontaine Avenue Streetscape is now expected to be completed in April 2026
• Emmet Streetcape is now expected to be completed in April 2026

This story was generated by a routine check of recent procurement activities. Here are some other recent contract awards made by the City of Charlottesville as well as some open bids: 

• Contractors interested in purchasing and installing a specific restroom at the city’s Riverview Park have until March 4, 2024 to submit their bid. The model to be installed is a Smith-Midland Easi-Set Sierra Flush Precast restroom. The selected contractor also has to prepare the site, but the city will purchase the drinking fountain. (learn more) 

• On February 2, the city awarded a contract to Waste Management of Virginia to handle citywide dumpster services (learn more)
• On February 14, the city awarded a contract to C&G Paving Incorporated for “construction and repair services related to pathways, trails, courts, parking areas and other surfaces throughout City parks and City managed trail corridors.” (learn more)
• Bids closed on February 23 for a firm to have an on-call contract for “asbestos abatement services on an as needed basis.” (learn more)

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