By CHERYL ROMANO/YachatsNews
YACHATS — After a slight paperwork snag, the city of Yachats is starting negotiations with the low bidder on the long-awaited library rebuilding project.
At the bids unveiling last week, seven firms submitted bids to construct a new library where the original 51-year-old building now stands on West Seventh Street.
Initially, city infrastructure clerk Neal Morphis announced that the apparent low bidder was DSL Builders of Salem with a bid of $1,447,000. The budget for the new library is $1.5 million. DSL constructed the new Yachats fire station, an $8 million project that opened in 2019.
However, when it was discovered that the DSL bid didn’t include a required insurance letter, the nod went to Unitus Services of Ridgefield, Wash. with a bid of $1,530,000.
“We will begin negotiations with them,” Morphis announced Friday.
Notably absent from the seven firms bidding on the project was King West of Salem, which had been working in an advisory capacity on the library project.
Shortly after a builder is under contract, the 51-year-old original building on Seventh Street will be demolished to make way for the new, larger and updated library.
The new facility will offer some 3,600 square feet of books, magazines and DVDs, plus a community meeting room and an area for teenagers and children. The old structure measures 2,400 square feet.
The city, which owns the library and the land it sits on, in November took on project oversight to take it through the building stage, under the leadership of Rick McClung. For years, the work had been guided by Library Commission chair David Rivinus, aided by other volunteers.
McClung, who oversees street and water projects for Yachats, has a background working with contractors. He also heads up the reconstruction of The Little Log Church and Museum.
A long library history
When Rivinus joined the commission in 2019, moving or expanding the library had already been talked about for some 20 years. The city had planned to start a small, 400-square-foot expansion, when Friends of the Yachats Library got a $150,000 bequest added to another $150,000 the city had received years before.
In 2020, a formal assessment conducted by library consultant Penny Hummel concluded that the city needed a 3,756-foot library to serve future population needs. However, the Covid pandemic intervened, and staff turnover and turmoil in City Hall combined to slow down plans for several years.
More funds came in: first, a $250,000 Ford Foundation grant secured by Friends of the Yachats Library and then more, smaller grants and donations joined the kitty. A big boost came last April, when the city released $600,000 for the new library, tapping urban renewal district funds.
Later, a soil test on the West Seventh Street site revealed that the ground was too unstable to support the planned expansion. The least expensive option turned out to be tearing down the original library and starting all over on the current site.
While demolition was hoped to happen last summer, a few more issues arose. There was an asbestos report needed before the building materials could be disposed of safely. No asbestos was found. Then a structural engineering report was required to gauge things like the floor strength needed to support large, heavy bookcases.
The library continues to operate in temporary quarters in Room 8 of the Commons. Entry is on the north side of the building next to the book return box. Hours are noon to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Patrons can scan the available collection, and put a hold on titles, at this website.
- Cheryl Romano is a Yachats freelance reporter who contributes regularly to YachatsNews. She can be reached at Wordsell@gmail.com
Why not get a local company ?
Because a local company or companies may have chosen not to submit a bid. Can’t get considered and/or selected if you didn’t submit a bid. If one or more local companies did submit a bid, it appears they were not qualified and/or the low bidder.