North Bergen is taking sealed bids on what it calls I-Bank Contract 2, roadway and drainage improvements on three township streets in Hudson County. Bids open October 15 at 11 a.m. at the Municipal Building, 4233 Kennedy Boulevard. The notice carries no solicitation number, so the contract name is the identifier.

Which three streets? Check that first. The township's web posting has the envelope line reading “73RD, 74TH AND 76TH STREET,” while its title line, which also garbles 73rd as “73Ro,” reads 75th Street. On a drainage job, that's the difference between pricing one block and another. Get the limits in writing from the township before you take off a single foot of pipe, and label your envelope exactly the way the bid documents tell you to.

So where's the money from? “I-Bank” is the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank. In August, the I-Bank announced that North Bergen “recently closed on an $3.5 million loan with the NJ Transportation Bank to support roadway and pedestrian infrastructure improvements throughout the township.” That announcement doesn't name streets, so the record doesn't say whether this contract is paid from that loan.

Small subs, look here: “This Contract includes a goal of awarding 4.5% of the Total Contract Price to subcontractors qualifying as SBEs.” On a street job, that's the paving, concrete or trucking sub with the right certification. Check the bid documents for which SBE certification the township counts.

Coming from New York? New Jersey requires public works registration with its Department of Labor for “all contractors, subcontractors, or lower tier subcontractors (including subcontractors listed in bid proposal) who bid on or engage in the performance of any public work in New Jersey.” Plans cost $50 a set and are picked up at the purchasing office, Room B-5 of the Municipal Building, weekdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

What to do now: pick up the documents this week, settle the street question in writing, and have the bid in by 11 a.m. on October 15.

On the record: I-Bank Contract 2 — 73rd, 74th and 75th Street Roadway & Drainage Improvements, issued by Township of North Bergen (NJ). Bids are due October 15, 2026 (Bids are opened at 11 a.m. at the Municipal Building, 4233 Kennedy Boulevard, North Bergen.). The listing on Township of North Bergen public notices: https://www.northbergen.org/Notices/View?id=2566. Full record on The RFI Wire's board: https://therfiwire.com/rfi/RFI-003140.html.