Lakes Highway District Advertises 2026 Road Projects; Pre-bid March 10

Lakes Highway District is advertising its 2026 Road Improvement Projects and will accept separate sealed bids at the Lakes Highway District Office, 17783 N. Pope Road, Hayden Lake, Idaho 83835, until 10:00 a.m. prevailing local time March 19, 2026. The legal notice states the package “generally consist[s] of roadway rehabilitation of the East Hayden Lake Road and an Asphalt Mill and Inlay on Prairie Avenue,” and a pre-bid meeting will begin at the district office on March 10 at 10:00 a.m.

Bid submissions will be publicly opened and read aloud immediately following the 10:00 a.m. deadline on March 19, the notice says. Contract Documents may be examined at the Spokane Regional Plan Center, 209 N. Havana, Spokane, WA 99202, and at the Lakes Highway District Office, 17783 N. Pope Road, Hayden Lake, Idaho 83835. Hard sets of the Contract Documents are available at the Lakes Highway District Office upon payment of Thirty Dollars ($30.00) per set; payment must be made to the Lakes Highway District and is non-refundable.

The legal advertisement lays out procurement conditions without detailing amounts: “Each Bidder must deposit, with their bid, security in the amount, form and subject to the conditions provided in the Instructions to Bidders.” The notice also specifies that “No Bidder may withdraw their bid within sixty (60) days after the date of the opening thereof” and that “Davis Bacon Wages do not apply to this project.” The notice contains the exact, unusual reservation clause reading, “The Owner waives the right to waive any formality or to reject any or all of the bids.”

The advertisement is dated “Dated this 26th day of February 2026” and is signed by “/s/ Eric W. Shanley, P.E. Director of Highways.” Publication identifiers on the notice are Legal#15821 AD#45910 with listed publication dates February 26, and March 5 and 12, 2026.

Separate planning documents in the Idaho Transportation Department STIP/ITIP show broader Lakes Highway District activity in Kootenai County that is not part of this advertised bid package. A draft STIP entry approved for public comment on June 12, 2025 says the district intends “to take the alternatives developed in the Lakes Highway District planning study and carry them into the NEPA for final evaluation of alternatives, selection, design, and construction of improvements near Athol, Idaho in Kootenai County,” including replacement and relocation of a structurally deficient bridge across the UPRR and a realignment of Old Highway 95 to connect to a future Parks Road interchange. Another STIP fragment describes systemic guardrail improvements and shoulder widening at multiple locations within Lakes Highway District jurisdiction.

Contractors and interested parties should attend the March 10 pre-bid meeting at 10:00 a.m., obtain Contract Documents at the Lakes Highway District Office for $30 per set, and prepare bids for submission by 10:00 a.m. March 19 when bids will be publicly opened and read aloud.