Nine contractors bid on July 9 to demolish the city's asphalt plant on Harper Street in Queens, and the spread between them is the story. Apache Environmental & Development LLC is the apparent low at $2,478,000. The next bid, from MPCC Corp., is $3,995,665. The high, from National Environmental Safety Company, is $14,143,675.

The Department of Design and Construction's project HWHARPER-1 (EPIN 85025B0068), in Queens Community Board 7, clears the existing plant so new plant operations can go in: vehicle and utility work, foundations for the asphalt equipment, and several support buildings. DDC first advertised the demolition in City Record in April under EPIN 85025B0057 with a May due date, then re-advertised it under the current EPIN at the end of May.

The full field: Apache Environmental & Development LLC $2,478,000.00; MPCC Corp. $3,995,665.00; High Point Construction Group Corp. $4,315,002.75; Russo Development Enterprises Inc. $4,445,555.00; Gramercy Group Inc. $4,831,000.00; H & L Contracting LLC $5,550,866.70; Tully Construction Co. Inc. $5,768,967.00; John Civetta & Sons Inc. $11,009,330.00; National Environmental Safety Company Inc. $14,143,675.00.

Apache is $1,517,665 under MPCC, which puts its price 38.0% below the second bid; measured the other way, MPCC is 61.2% above Apache. Six bids, MPCC through Tully, sat between $4.0 million and $5.8 million, with the median at $4,831,000. The high bid is 470.8% above the low. No engineer's estimate appears in the public bid record.

This demolition is one piece of a long-running rebuild of the Harper Street site. City Record shows DDC sought a construction manager and design-build team for reconstruction of the Harper Street asphalt plant as far back as 2016, and in 2023 awarded a $120,648,807 design-build contract for a new Harper Street administration building to the Scalamandre-Tully JV. Our board carries the demolition as RFI-000984.

Why this matters. When the low bid is 38% under everybody else on a demolition, the bidders did not read the job the same way. Plant demolition means steel, tanks, foundations and whatever is in the ground under an asphalt operation. An apparent low is not an award, and DDC has to decide whether the low is responsive and responsible before it moves.

What to do next. Demolition, abatement, trucking and disposal subs should price to Apache and keep a number ready for MPCC. Watch City Record for DDC's award.

Update, Sept. 28, 2026: City Record published DDC's award of the demolition on Nov. 6, 2025 to MPCC Corp., the second bidder, for $3,995,665. The notice does not say why the lower bid was not taken. On June 2, 2026, City Record listed the next phase, Harper Street Asphalt Plant: Rebuild, awarded from DDC's large general contractor prequalified list to Iannelli Construction Co Inc for $54,750,141.