A construction company submitted a $144.4 million bid to build a new central library in downtown San Diego, which is about $115,000 less than it quoted in a 2005 cost estimate, according to a memo sent today to the City Council by Mayor Jerry Sanders.
The total cost of the library is estimated to be about $185 million, which includes $18.6 million spent on work already completed and $21.8 million for non-construction costs such as furniture, fixtures, equipment, permits and project management, according to the memo.
Over the next few weeks, staff will review the bid from Turner Construction to negotiate and finalize a contract with the city, according to the mayor's office.
The project will then go to the Rules, Open Government and Intergovernmental Relations Committee in June, before being considered by the full City Council in early July.
The City Council was waiting for the final cost estimate for the project before moving ahead.
Construction must begin by Aug. 1 to meet the deadline for a $20 million state library grant.
The design for the proposed project, at 330 Park Blvd. in the East Village calls for a nine-story, dome-topped library with an auditorium, meeting spaces, sculpture garden and underground parking.
The city has raised $37 million from private donations for the new library, in addition to the $20 million state grant. The San Diego Unified School District has also agreed to pay the city $20 million to lease two floors of the library for a charter high school or middle school that would serve about 400 students.
