The Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the Alaska Dept. of Corrections recently selected three companies who will compete for a design-build contract for what is likely the largest building project in recent state history.
The Point MacKenzie Correctional Center, a 1,536-bed facility, will be located at the corner of Alsop Road and Point MacKenzie Road some nine miles from the Port MacKenzie dock. The anticipated cost to design and build the prison is more than $200 million. The square footage of the multiple buildings of the medium-security prison is not yet determined.
MAT-SU Borough Purchasing Officer Russ Krafft is managing the contract solicitation process. ?This is one of the largest vertical construction projects that's ever taken place in Alaska,? Krafft said. ?Two of these groups formed a joint venture specifically for this project. It's like building an entire university campus at once,? Krafft said.
Commissioner Joe Schmidt, of the Dept. of Corrections, gave a brief talk to the Assembly today, discussing overcrowding in Alaska prisons and the 850 or so prisoners who are housed in Arizona. ?We look forward to working with the Matanuska-Susitna Borough through completion of this project,? Schmidt said. ?It represents the first significant increase in prison beds since 1988.?
One of the three companies will likely be selected in September or October.
The three companies are:
All of the companies have a strong Alaska presence among their subcontractors. Hunt/Lydig/Kiewitt Pacific Co., the joint venture is headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz. Kiewitt Pacific has built large Alaska projects, including the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport remodel at $193 million, and the Glenn/Parks Interchange at $47 million. One member of the joint venture built a $515 million jail in Arizona called the Maricopa County Jail expansion.
Among the subcontractors are these Alaska firms: PND Engineers, Earthscape, Golden & Associates, Design Alaska.
Cornerstone/JE Dunn will be headquartered in Anchorage. Cornerstone already has offices there. JE Dunn is out of Kirkland, Wash. The lead designer is WH Pacific, a subsidiary of NANA Development Corporation, based in Anchorage. R&M Consultants, Inc. is also in Anchorage. Correctional Design Specialists is based in Calif. Among their potential subcontractors are three local firms from the MAT-SU: Collins Construction, FE Contracting, and Howdie, Inc.
Some of the comparable projects a member of the company has built include: La Palma Correctional Center in Eloy, Ariz. at $171 million; Jefferson City Correctional Center at $115.6 million in Mo., and a prison in Muscat, Oman, that cost $200 million to build.
Neeser Construction, Inc. is competing for the project. Neeser has done design-build work for 34 years in Alaska. KPB Architects, of Anchorage, is teaming up with Neeser. Among the subcontractors from Anchorage: Dowl Engineers, Superior Plumbing & Heating, Alcan Electrical, and Coffman Engineers, Inc.
Neeser alone has built the Anchorage Jail at $44 million, the Alaska Psychiatric Institute at $37 million as well as the new Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center with construction costs at $93 million. HOK Architect, another major participant, has worked on the San Quentin Condemned Inmate Complex at $156 million.
Groundbreaking is expected in spring of 2009. Timber is being cleared from the site now. A conceptual site plan is attached to this press release and posted on the web site under newsroom at www.matsugov.us
A group of design professionals will aid Borough staff in selecting the company. The consultant, Alaska Planning & Architecture will also help evaluate the technical criteria. Assembly member Cindy Bettine requested that the appointment process for a citizens advisory group for the prison begin now.
The project is expected to generate 600 to 700 construction jobs and 350 prison jobs. The prison is a joint project between the Borough and the State of Alaska. The prison will be financed by the sale of revenue bonds. The Department of Corrections will lease the prison from the MAT-SU Borough, operate it, and eventually own it when the lease-revenue bonds are repaid through 25 annual lease payments. Borough taxpayers are not paying for the project.
For more information call Purchasing Officer Russ Krafft at (907) 745-9601.
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