Cornplanter Square bids to be opened next month

Bidding for the first phase of the Cornplanter Square project in Oil City is scheduled to open at 10 a.m. Nov. 9, Venango County economic development director Emily Lewis said Tuesday.

Two separate bids will be taken for demolition and abatement and for the roof.

A mandatory walk-through of the building for all bidders is scheduled for 1 p.m. Oct. 26.

“It’s to ensure that the people bidding on the project understand the scope of the building and the layout,” Lewis said. “The architects will be on-site. It will be an opportunity for the bidders to ask the architects (DesignLabs, of Boston) any questions they may have.”

The contract with Cranmer Consultants, a government relations firm out of Pittsburgh, was revised to reflect that it is doing business with the authority directly rather than with the county commissioners.

Research continues into potential uses for the 40 acres next to Venango Regional Airport.

The economic development authority board meets at 10 a.m. on the third Tuesday of each month in the conference room of the Courthouse Annex.