ST. LOUIS — No companies submitted bids for the second half of a $200 million plan to expand the downtown convention center, raising more questions about the project just weeks after the first phase attracted only one contractor with a proposal that was $40 million over the estimated cost.
The St. Louis Board of Public Service, which lets city public contracts, is overseeing the construction contracts for the convention project, the cost of which St. Louis and St. Louis County taxpayers are splitting. At its Tuesday meeting, when bids for the second phase of the America’s Center expansion were due, staff for the city reported none had been received for the roughly $70 million project.
“Just to be clear … we have received zero bids, correct?†Board of Public Service Director Richard Bradley asked.
“That is correct,†St. Louis Contracts Supervisor Helen Bryant responded.
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The lack of interest in the second piece of the expansion is the latest hiccup for the project. The absence of bidders comes two weeks after the board overseeing the project moved ahead with the lone $124 million bid for the first half, a contract officials had put out to bid with a price tag estimated at $83 million.
Backers of the convention center expansion say they will negotiate “negative change orders†that bring down the cost of the first half by at least $8 million without changing the scope of the project. And on Tuesday, they sought to downplay the lack of interest in the second phase of the project, with Convention and Visitors Commission Director Kitty Ratcliffe instead pointing to the Board of Public Service’s final approval of the contract with Ben-Hur Construction for the first phase.
“We are very pleased that the BPS today approved the Project 1 construction contract for Ben-Hur so that the steel and other material orders that were delayed can now be ordered for the exhibit hall and loading dock expansion and the work can begin,†she said in response to a text message about the lack of bids for the second phase. “First things first, as the saying goes.â€
She said the coordination team, on which she and city and county officials serve, will address the second phase once the contract for the first is finalized and the “negative change orders†are negotiated. The second phase includes a new public plaza on surface lots along Convention Plaza and a new ballroom inside America’s Center.
St. Louis County Executive Sam Page’s spokesman said the lack of bids “wasn’t a surprise†given “current market conditions.â€
“The first half the project is ready to proceed,†Page spokesman Doug Moore said.
A spokesman for Mayor Tishaura O. Jones declined to comment, and a spokesman for Comptroller Darlene Green, whose office chairs the coordination team for the project, referred questions to BPS and the project manager, Kwame Building Group.
A tight labor market and supply chain issues have driven up the cost of construction, casting doubt on a $210 million convention center price tag envisioned back when the project was first pitched nearly four years ago. Political squabbling in the city, the pandemic and a dispute over a deal for a north St. Louis County recreation center delayed for years the final approvals for the bonds.
After delaying for six months, St. Louis County two weeks ago gave final approval to its share of $105 million in bonds, tacking another $40 million to build a north St. Louis County track and field center.
CVC officials are in a rush to complete pieces of the expansion by late 2023 to accommodate conventions and groups it has promised the space to. The project also has strong support from organized labor and many public officials.
The plan was contemplated as the city and county neared the retirement of bonds they issued to build the Dome at America’s Center, where the NFL’s Rams used to play. The $6 million in hotel taxes each jurisdiction paid on that debt would then be used on new debt to expand and revamp America’s Center.
It’s unclear whether more debt will be needed or if pieces of the project could be scaled back due to the higher prices, though officials have insisted the scope of the project isn’t changing.
Posted at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, May 3.