Ports opens bidding process for $1.5M Vieques airport renovation
As part of its capital improvement program, the Puerto Rico Ports Authority has opened the bidding process to renovate the Antonio Rivera-Rodriguez airport in Vieques, at a cost of $1.5 million, the agency’s Interim Executive Director Joel A. Pizá-Batiz announced.
The improvements include the replacement of the terminal’s metal roof, reconditioning the roof of the Air Rescue building, replacing the roof of the Vieques Air Link hangar, and minor repairs to other airport facilities, which suffered severe damage during the passage of Hurricane María in 2017.
Ports had been working on defining damages and cost estimates with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with support from The Central Office of Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency, known as COR3, to achieve a 90% subsidy under the federal agency’s Public Assistance program.
“The goal of this project, estimated at $1.5 million, is to eliminate leaks and other problems caused by the atmospheric event, which prevents the optimal operation of the airport,” Pizá-Batiz said.
The bidding process for this project is scheduled to be held at the end of February and be awarded a month later. The contracting is scheduled to take place in April or May 2020, and work must begin in the summer of 2020. It is anticipated that the project should be completed in about six months after the contracting is completed.
“Ports continues to optimize its air facilities, in this case the Vieques airport, to improve the level of service we provide, both to passengers, as well as to the airlines that use them,” said Pizá-Batiz. “This way, we continue to contribute to the island municipality’s economic development.”
