Mulligan Road Construction Delayed

Update (Nov. 17, 2011: 12:57 p.m.): The construction company that filed both bid protests is the Overland Corporation.

Phase II of the has seen another setback.

The same company that filed an earlier unsuccessful protest on Phase II of the Mulligan Road construction project has filed a second bid protest with the Government Accountability Office, according to a recent Board Matter filed by Lee District Supervisor Jeff McKay. The company that has filed this bid protest did not win its bid to be the contractor for this project.

Supervisor McKay and Mount Vernon District Supervisor Gerry Hyland have asked Chairman Sharon Bulova to ask County staff to prepare a letter to the FHWA from the Board of Supervisors urging it to use every opportunity to minimize further construction delays of Mulligan Road. Construction of Mulligan Road is expected to be completed in 2013 and will give Mount Vernon residents a direct route to the Kingstowne area. Mulligan Road is expected to ease congestion on Route 1 for commuters.

Supervisor McKay stressed the urgency of resuming construction of Mulligan Road.

"We need all hands on deck to expedite this project," he notes in the Board Matter. "We have now lost a full year of construction time and Route One is in total daily gridlock."

On September 16, The Federal Highway Administration had re-awarded the contract to Shirley Contracting and issued a Notice to Proceed for construction on October 11, the Board Matter notes. Since the second bid protest was filed, the FHWA has sent a suspend work order to the contracting company.  

As a result of the bid protest, the FHWA has 30 days to prepare a report and the GAO has 100 days to issue a decision based on the report. The bid protest may cause significant construction delays. The FHWA is also planning an appeal to the GAO requesting an expedited decision due to the significance of the project and the urgency for immediate construction.

Independent contractors are in the process of relocating utilities and will continue the process despite the bid protest.