ANNA MARIA – The city now has a firm under contract to demolish the Anna Maria City Pier.
On Wednesday, June 6, the Anna Maria Commission voted 4-1 in favor of Mayor Dan Murphy being authorized to execute a $732,000 contract with Largo-based Speeler & Associates.
Speeler & Associates was the city’s second-highest ranked demolition bidder. Murphy entered into fact-finding conversations with the firm earlier this week after he and Sully’s Quality Projects owner Sean Sullivan were unable to agree on payment terms for a proposed $673,530 demolition contract.
Sullivan wanted a $53,822 payment before mobilizing to the pier worksite. Murphy and the commission deemed those terms unacceptable and on Monday, June 4, Murphy was authorized to begin discussions with Speeler & Associates.
“This contract has been reviewed by our city attorney. We both feel very comfortable that this is a good and fair and equitable contract,” Murphy said. “You’ll see progress here shortly.”
The contract was signed Wednesday. It calls for an initial payment of $100,000 after the company has completely mobilized at the pier worksite by the end of June. The pier will be fenced off and barge-based cranes will be stationed at the end of the pier.
The contract calls for a total of four payment phases including a final payment of $109,000 when the work is finished.
Speeler & Associates has until June 11 to secure a performance bond that guarantees the firm fulfills its contract.
The contract calls for the pier demolition to completed on or before Sept. 30. The contract includes a $500 per day penalty for each day the work exceeds the agreed-upon completion date.
“They do anticipate that they can do it sooner than that and because of these payments they’d like to do it sooner than that. That’s the carrot on a stick,” Murphy said of the demolition timeline.
Murphy said one clause was added to the contract regarding any additional work requested by the city beyond what Speeler & Associates included in its bid document response to the city’s request for proposals.
“If we come up with something extra we want them to do outside the bid document, we’re going to pay extra for it. That seems only logical,” Murphy said.
When it was time to vote, Commissioner Dale Woodland opposed with additional comment Commissioner Carol Carter’s motion to authorize Murphy to execute the contract with Speeler & Associates.
During the commission’s May 18 pier meeting, Woodland said he could not support the selection of a demolition firm because he does not support the demolition of the pier. He believes the existing pier and pier structures should be repaired and/or rehabilitated.
Pier planks
Later in the week, Murphy said local contractor Frank Agnelli and his crew from Agnelli Pools Construction and Mason Martin Builders are scheduled to begin pulling the engraved pier planks in late June.
Some of the engraved pier planks that were purchased from a non-city entity will be returned to those who formally requested their return. The unclaimed planks will be stored by Agnelli and used later by the city to build memorial walls at City Pier Park and in the historical park near the Anna Maria Island Historical Society Museum.
Murphy recently said he anticipates the requested planks to be available for pick up in early July.
The pier has been closed since September due to Hurricane Irma damage sustained to the T-end decking, restaurant space and bait shop. The new $4.5 million pier, restaurant space and bait shop are slated for completion and reopening in late 2019.
