The contracts for the remaining work at the Schenck Farmstead will be on the agenda during the Township Council’s meeting on Monday, August 16.
A contract to Kunzman Construction for $167,257.20 — the lowest of seven bidders ranging up to $313,000 — is expected to take care of the final work related to the reconstruction of the school house and wagon house located at the Schenck Farm on Southfield Road.
In June, the council rejected two bids, including one from Kunzman, and another from Dell-Tech Inc., because both were found to be “non-responsive.” That was because they both failed to acknowledge receiving an addendum to the original bid specifications. The rest of the bids exceeded the township’s budget for the project.
With the new bids in, officials are hopeful they are making their way to the final close out of the project, which will renew the historical landmark in the heart of the township.
Business Administrator Robert Hary also reported during the meeting that because bids came back at a lower price than expected, the township has enough money to cover the installation of the bathrooms on site in this phase of the project — a portion of the project they thought would have to come later.
Set back from Southfield Road, the Schenck Farmstead is buffered by the surrounding cornfields and rows of trees and shrubbery. The council endorsed a Master Plan for the farmstead in 2008.
The site’s structures date from approximately the 1740s to the early 1900s, and officials have hoped it would serve as a tool for educating residents about the town’s agricultural roots, as well as serve as the home base for the township’s historical society. The three structures on site — the Dutch-English barn, the carriage/wagon house, and the school house — complement the main house, which now serves as the historical society’s home.
The restoration project began in 1991, when the land and its structures were donated to the township by West Windsor land baron Max Zaitz. Officials have been working on its restoration ever since. The plan also allows for other historical structures to be located on site in the future. Some planned buildings include a windmill — already donated — and a pump house.
