BREA : New Bids Sought on Downtown Project

The city has decided to reopen the bidding on construction and relocation work at its historic downtown district because of dissatisfaction with offers received to date.

This time, however, officials hope to generate enough interest in the project to split up the work among several developers, instead of giving the contract to a single bidder as originally planned. That could make the project more attractive to local developers.

The new bidding was decided by a 4-1 vote of the City Council at its meeting earlier this week. Kathryn E. Wiser was the lone dissenter, saying later that she does not believe the city has developed a clear enough plan for the redevelopment effort.

Two companies submitted proposals for the project earlier this year, but city officials said the firms did not provide proof that they could adequately finance the Heritage Block project, located on the northeast corner of Brea Boulevard and Ash Street.

The project consists of moving three historic buildings, including the 89-year-old Brea Hotel, to the 7.5-acre site and building retail and office structures and affordable housing there as well. The land is owned by the city’s Redevelopment Agency.

The city has not yet decided whether to sell the historic buildings to developers and let them do the rehabilitation work. If no developers come forward with proposals that meet requirements, the city will complete the project at government expense.

The total costs are still not known.

The City Council, in its capacity as the Redevelopment Agency, will evaluate proposals to determine the value of the project, said Eric Nicoll, redevelopment services manager.