The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-05-27
Evansville Contractor Building
Post Office Gets Contract for
the Third Ward School
c0MESCLOSE T0$50, 900 MARK
New Building Under Contract as Let
Will Cost the City $50, Work
to be Started Just as Soon as
Materials Can be Secured


The P. J. Cullen Company Of James
vile is to extend its building opera
tions in Kenosha for, added to the big
contract with the government for the
building of the new post Office build
ing, the company on Friday evening
was awarded the contract for the
building Of the new school in the
Third ward
Under the contract the school com
plete will cost the city $50,110 and
while some of the members of the
Board objected seriously to even this
small advance over the cost ToI the
building as set by resolution Of the
former Board, the contract was finally
let to the GAINESVILLE Company by a
unanimous vote of the Board The
contract is to be drawn up at once and
will be presented to the Board for
ratification on next Friday evening.
1t is expected that the work on the
new school will be started early in
June and if possible it will be com
pleted by the first of next January
The contract with the company will be
accompanied by bond Of $45, 900 to
Einsure the carrying out of the work
in keeping with the specifications.
There were nine bidders for the con
tract and the bids ranged from
$43,185 by the Cullen Company to
$64,594 by Macrum Bros. Of Elgin,
Ill. There were but two local bidders
for the contract and both of these
bids were considerably higher than the
ibid presented by the Cullen Company
The list of bids follows;
J. P. Cullen Co., GAINESVILLE. !. ;. $40, f85
Lacrosse Construction Co., La
Sterling Construction Co., Mil
WauKee. A ,9bU
Crosse .............. 1862
Burke, Smith & Nelson, Milwau-
kee ................. $4,000
Frank E. Foulke, Kenosha. -. 1926
X. P. Knudsen, Kenosha. 49,. 1880
Ranger & Hobson, Chicago. -. 48,67S
Appleton Construction Co., APP
pleton i. ................ 49,424
Macrum Bros, Elgin ...... 1854
The main argument before the Board
was found in the fact that the bids
when considered in connection with
the cost of the heating, plumbing and
ventilating brought the cost Of the
building up to more than $4,000 and
there is no doubt but that some of the
members of the Board would have been
in favor of rejecting all bids If some
one had taken the initiative and made
such suggestion. It is possible that
before the contract is signed the mem
bers of the Board will find way to
reduce the contract SO that it will
come within the $4,000 estimate.
Many of the members of the Board
Ethad desired to have the contract 90
to a local contractor and F. E. Foulke
announced that his bid could be re-
duced $1,000 by a change in the floors,
but the bid Of the GAINESVILLE Company
met every specification Of the build
ing. The contract for the heating and
ventilating of the building has al
ready been let and this will cost
$4,925. The contract for the plumb
ing in the building has not as yet been
Elet, but it will cost in the neighbor-
hood of $4,000 and it was estimated by
the members of the Board at this
amount in figuring up the total con
tract. 1t is just possible that the
plumbing bids will fall far enough be-
low $4,000 to make up for the present
over run of the contract price.
The Cullen Company is engaged en-
tirely in the building of large build
ings and for tins reason it is thought
that the company was in position to
make lower bid than the local con
tractors. No other business was taken
up at the meeting of the Board.