Public Works Director Jay Reynolds updated the Town Council on the Town Center Intersection Project during the June 2, 2025, council workshop.  Authorized by the Town Council in the fall of 2024, the project to improve the intersection's safety was slated to begin this spring.  However, after two rounds of advertised proposals in January and March of 2025, a project contract has not yet been secured.

After the first request for proposals (RFP) in January, only one bid, which came in at approximately $250,000 over budget, was received.  The second round included a "value engineered" project to lower the scope and cost by eliminating secondary features such as landscaping.  Reynolds reported that this second RFP did not receive any bids, most likely due to the timing of the advertisement.  

According to Reynolds, most contractors have their spring and summer schedules lined up in the fall of the prior year. Therefore, Reynolds recommends that the project be rebid in October 2025, with work to begin in the spring of 2026, and that staff secure an extension from PACTS and MDOT.  Funding from PACTS and MDOT stipulates that construction must commence by October 2025. Town Manager Pat Fox said that they are currently in contact with both entities and anticipates that an extension is likely.

Currently, the Portland Water District has begun its work to replace the water mains underneath the roads at the town intersection.  While originally scheduled to coincide with the town's safety improvements at the intersection, the onset of the deep utility construction is optimal.  "The water main work underneath the road will happen one year ahead of our final work, which is a better end-product, " Fox said.