Government has adopted social media in a big way. Public officials were understandably slow to move into the new technology, but now the barriers are down and social media appears to have become the communication vehicle of choice. Facebook, Twitter, blogs and LinkedIn networks have become the most efficient way to reach collaborative communities.

Some examples of public sector social media initiatives:

• Mayor Michael Bloomberg has spearheaded a comprehensive social media campaign for the city of New York. A "Chief Digital Officer" was hired last year to lead the city's social media strategy. The mayor's office has its own Twitter account that provides links to press releases, answers to citizens' questions, city news and information.

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Tolls examined as one possibility for helping finance much-needed project

Gov. John Kasich

It's not a popular concept with the public - tolls to help pay for infrastructure projects. But, Ohio Gov. John Kasich thinks that is the best way to get the Brent Spence Bridge project off high center. The $2.4 billion bridge project is set to begin construction in 2016 and be completed in 2023, but a funding mechanism must be the first step. Kasich said he thinks charging tolls could move the construction schedule up so that construction could start in 2014.

The new double-decker bridge would replace the nearly 50-year-old Brent Spence bridge that has been declared "functionally obsolete." But, Kentucky owns the bridge and it will take a partnership between the two states to get it off the ground. Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear admits he, too, is not opposed to tolling as a financing option. Beshear says "all financing option, including tolling, must remain on the table."

Gov. Steve Beshear

Beshear says the time is now, and there is no reason to continue to wait for federal funding that may or may not come. Officials with a coalition formed to move the project forward have indicated that if the project starts four to five years earlier than expected, it could save $500 million.

Kentucky must pass legislation first that would allow the charging of tolls on the bridge. And the business community, government officials and the public must get on board for the project to be successful. Plans were floated to create a bi-state authority to develop a financing plan. Kentucky already has experience in such an effort, as it formed a bi-state agency with Indiana to help build the $2.5 billion Ohio River Bridges Project that is part of both states. But Kasich said he would rather work directly with his gubernatorial counterpart to work out the plans. At a recent meeting, the two agreed to keep all funding options for the bridge project on the table. It's a critical artery for our region, and we must build a new bridge soon," said Kasich.

Hoeven says Keystone provision should be included in legislation

John Hoeven

At least one member of Congress is confident that a long-term federal transportation bill will pass before funding runs out on June 30. Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota said after the first meeting of the bill's conference committee that he also believes a provision that requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to approve the controversial Keystone XL pipeline will be included in the bill.

The House version of the Surface Transportation Act included the Keystone XL measure and the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act. "These provisions are integral to a highway bill, and both enjoy strong bipartisan support. But, it's not just that they're bipartisan, we need to include them on their merits," said Hoeven, saying they also will create jobs and strengthen the economy through "good environmental stewardship."

The proposed pipeline would transport 830,000 barrels of oil per day to American refineries, which Hoeven says will take some 500 trucks per day off roads in the oil patch in his state alone. The price tag on the 1,700-mile transcontinental pipeline is estimated at $7 billion, but the senator says it will reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil and help lower fuel costs.

The Surface Transportation Bill has undergone more than10 stop-gap continuation measures, but a long-term reauthorization is being sought.

$2.7 million facility expansion approval up to school board

The Unioto (Ohio) schools' Board of Education will decide if the Unioto Junior High School will transform into the Unioto Middle School. A $2.7 million expansion plan decision rests with the board. As the school system's population increased, the board ordered a facilities study that revealed growing numbers in the elementary school. The study recommended a 12,400-square-foot addition to the existing junior high school. That area would then house the sixth grade, giving the elementary school more space. If approved and supplies and materials are readily available, officials say construction could be completed in less than 90 days. The project is expected to be put out for bids in November, with an opening date for fall 2013.

Colorado State planning $108 million residence hall complex

Jim Dolak

Colorado State University officials are planning to raze an existing residential village that houses 280 people in 146 units and replace it with a much larger residential hall complex. The proposed $108 million development will house up to 1,000 and will also feature a dining hall. The proposed facility is part of the university's plans to add more residential space on the main campus. Part of the new facility would be apartments or suite-style rooms. There will be anywhere from 900 to 1,000 beds, not all of which would be for students. Jim Dolak, CSU's executive director of Housing and Dining Services, said the new building will "meet the needs of various audiences," saying that will allow the university to "hedge on student growth." CSU also plans to raze an apartment complex on the north side of campus where approximately 100 single students live. Another new facility that would house up to 600 students would serve as a replacement.

Massachusetts schools preparing RFP for solar array initiative

A solar array that would have powered schools in Belmont, Massachusetts, has been slightly delayed, but installation could be completed while students are at school. An RFP seeking solar firms to complete the project is forthcoming. As part of the RFP, the town will allow the solar firms to up their portion of the power purchase if they upgrade and repair the roofs and become responsible for that part of the roof over the 20-year contract. But for now, only the school buildings are being considered for the solar panels. The city-owned properties were excluded mainly because some buildings were not structurally able to support the infrastructure or have existing construction deficits. While the project has been delayed, preparation work is being done in anticipation of responses to the RFP.

Millions of dollars in contracting opportunities will result from local referendums

More than $1.5 billion in bond issues drew voter approval last week in elections throughout Texas. As a result, millions of dollars in contracting opportunities will open up for new building construction, facility renovations, technology needs, street improvements and a variety of local initiatives.

Statewide, 11 cities, two community colleges, one hospital district and 46 school districts held bond referendums. They ranged from a $700,000 bond issue by a city in North Texas with a population of about 2,000 to pay for much-needed street improvements to a more than half-billion bond vote in San Antonio. That successful $596 million bond vote will provide for funding in four categories - streets/bridges/sidewalks, drainage, parks and facilities and community initiatives.

The bond issues up for vote totaled more than $1.7 billion. One city northeast of Dallas passed two of five propositions. The total bond package was $60 million. The two propositions that passed, related to downtown improvements and street improvements, together totaled more than $20 million. A school district in East Texas passed two of its four propositions that had a combined total cost of $77.9 million. Passing were a proposition for energy and security improvements for all campuses in the district, HVAC replacements for all campuses and renovations to a high school. Those projects alone will total $28.57 million.

Additionally, a new allied health building and parking garage that will cost $25 million was approved for a junior college in northeast Texas while a new hospital was approved with passage of a $594 million bond vote in a Texas hospital district vote.

Strategic Partnerships, Inc. has compiled a comprehensive list of the projects in the various bond elections that passed. This research is available for purchase. For more information and to order the package, click here.

Check out these recent awards:

• The Corbet Group has been awarded a $905,000 contract by the city of Greenville, Texas, to build an administration building at the new wastewater treatment plant.
• Woolpert has been awarded two contracts totaling approximately $2 million by the city of Indianapolis Department of Public Works to survey pavements and develop a street sign inventory using mobile mapping technology.
• Kaye Electric won a $43,975.70 contract from the city of Newton, Kansas, for detention center surveillance cameras. Science Applications International Corporation was awarded a prime single-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract with a five-year base period of performance and a total contract value of approximately $37 million by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Louis District to provide hazardous, toxic and radioactive waste (HTRW) investigation and remediation programs in St. Louis and Burlington, Idaho.
• MedPro Technologies LLC has won a $14.1 million contract from the U.S. Army Contracting Command in Concord, Massachusetts, to provide information technology support services to the government.
• Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. has been awarded a contract worth nearly $68 million by the U.S. Department of Defense to provide on-orbit operations engineering support regarding research and development for the first two next-generation satellites for the Global Positioning System.
• Twin Falls Crane Service has been awarded a $24,000 contract for demolition of the old City Hall building in Kimberly, Idaho.
• Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabuam was awarded a $155 million contract by the San Mateo, California, County Board of Supervisors for construction of a new 206,000-square-foot jail in Redwood City.
• Cardinal Design has secured a contract for $100,095 from the city of Riverton, Wyoming, to prepare plans and specifications for remodeling of the Johnson Rehabilitation Center.
• Dondlinger & Sons Construction won a contract worth almost $6.5 million from Harvey County, Kansas, for a runway reconstruction project at the Newton City-County Airport.
• Booz Allen Hamilton  has been awarded a five-year, $2.5 million task order award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to provide privacy and compliance services. 
• Orion Marine Construction Inc. was awarded a $2.687 million contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District for maintenance dredging of the lower reach of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway's Channel to Victoria in Calhoun County, Texas.

Georgia to resurrect Northwest Corridor project as public-private partnership

Gov. Nathan Deal

Officials in Georgia are considering adding toll lanes to Interstate 75 and 575 as part of a public-private partnership. Gov. Nathan Deal said that the new plan will allow the state to keep more control of the lanes both during and after completion of construction and will also have input on how much the toll costs will be and when private partners will begin to receive a return on their investment.

Deal said the new plan will help protect the state's rights and that the state will retain its assets. The original deal was benched because of the long-term commitment that the state would have to buy into. Deal said that plan would have limited the improvements the state could make along the I-75 corridor outside the toll lane project for years into the future. The new plan includes two new express lanes along the west side of I-75 between I-285 and I-575. The lanes will be reversible and tolls would vary according to traffic volume. Single toll lanes would be built along I-75 from I-575 north to Hickory Grove Road and along I-575 north to Sixes Road, for a total road length of 30 miles.

The state has set aside $300 million in motor fuel tax revenues for the project. A total of $270 million more would come from a low-interest federal loan and the Department of Transportation has also set aside another $200 million toward the project. The remainder of the funds would come from private sector partners. An RFQ for interested contractors will be released next month, with a list of qualified vendors then picked for a short list that will receive RFPs. 

Partnership will lead to construction of $200M O'Hare cargo facility

A $200 million air cargo center will be built at Chicago's O'Hare Airport, thanks to a partnership between developer Aeroterm and the city. Aeroterm will pay $130 million of the construction costs, with $62 million coming from airport funds. The agreement between the developer and the city is for 35 years. The first phase of the project would open in 2013, with the entire facility to be open by 2020. The facility will cover 820,000 square feet and will increase drastically the air cargo space at the airport. Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Aeroterm's willingness to participate in the project is a good sign that the company is anticipating continued growth in the import-export business. Emanuel also said not only will the expansion be a boost to the local economy, but it will also mean "a critical investment in the cargo part of this airport."

City in Mississippi seeking public sector partner to address water issues

Samantha Abell

City officials in Gautier, Mississippi, are looking for a private partner to help them address water needs the city cannot afford. City Manager Samantha Abell described the priority water issues for the city as water that has a brown tint to it, the replacement of water meters and resolving increasing sewer problems. Abell said the city is inviting proposals from professional service vendors who are experienced in operating public works. Maxed out on its debt service, the city has taken loans against its sales tax as well as incurring $16 million in debt when the city incorporated. "We can't afford to improve or properly address our capital needs," said Abell.

Aging meters and those that were under water during Hurricane Katrina need to be replaced, she said. And while the city can afford to purchase the meters, it can't afford labor costs to install them. With a professional service, Abell said the city could save enough money to install a system to clear up the water. And a needed video survey that costs $1.2 million could be paid for by the private partner. 

Kansas

• Wichita State University is seeking bids for the Duerksen Fine Arts Center HVAC system replacement, estimated at a cost of $3.2 million.
• Kansas State University is seeking bids for ceiling/roof deck repairs on Ackert Hall, estimated at a cost of $480,000.
• The Kansas Department of Transportation is seeking bids for reroofing the Syracuse area shop, estimated at a cost of $75,000.

New York City

• The New York City Department of Sanitation seeks proposals from qualified contractors to develop a facility or facilities demonstrating the application of new and emerging technology in the processing of DSNY-managed waste.
• The City of New York Department of Parks and Recreation has issued an RFP for the renovation, operation and maintenance of a Snack Bar/Beach Shop and the optional operation of up to five (5) Mobile Food Units at Rockaway Beach, Queens, NY.
• The New York City Department of Education is seeking bids for lead-based paint abatement including painting, plastering and finishing in various school buildings and leased premises throughout the boroughs of the City of New York. 

Pennsylvania

• The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission is seeking a roofing project at the Washington Crossing Historical Park to include removal of the existing asphalt roof, flashing, underlayment, gutters and spouting and the installation of new underlaying, flashing, asphalt shingles and gutters and spouting on the Lower Park Maintenance Building.
• The Pennsylvania Department of General Services is seeking bidders to lease 5,763 usable square feet of office space for the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole in Butler County, PA.

Connecticut

• The town of New Fairfield is seeking qualified housing rehabilitation contractors to perform housing rehabilitation activities for the town.
• Connecticut Community Colleges have issued an open call for consultants in technology, science, engineering and manufacturing to high school and college students.
• The town of Tolland is seeking to retain the services of a qualified firm to operate and maintain its water production, treatment, storage and transmission/distribution systems within the town for not less than three (3) nor more than five (5) years.

Maryland

• Prince George's County is seeking bids for demolition of the OMES Building.
• Prince George's County is seeking bids for a complete audio-video conferencing system.
• Harford County government is seeking qualified vendors for the installation, lease/rental, supplies and maintenance of six (6) wide format machines.

Dr. H. Neil Matkin (top left), president of San Jacinto College Central in Pasadena, Texas, for the last four years, has announced he will step down to accept the position of executive vice president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System. Jack Martin (top center), Highland Park Public Schools Emergency Manager, has been named chief financial officer for the City of Detroit, and will be replaced at Highland Park by Joyce Parker president of Ann-Arbor based The Municipal Group L.L.C. Baltimore Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld (top right), who joined the Baltimore Police Department in 1981 and has risen through the ranks to lead the department for the last five years, has announced that he will retire after 31 years with the police force. Cathy Canorro, director of Washington State's minority contracting agency, has resigned her post following complaints about the agency's performance and allegations of fraud regarding eligibility of some minority businesses for government contracts. Eddy County, New Mexico, Finance Director Larry Augsbury, who has only been on the job for 18 months, has resigned, effective immediately, with former finance director Debbie Penaluna-Funk to serve as acting finance director. Cranston, Rhode Island, Superintendent of Schools Peter Nero has announced he is retiring after reportedly being named lone finalist for the superintendent's job in North Stonington, Connecticut. Barbara Byrd Bennett (middle right), a national education consultant, will take over as interim chief education officer for the Chicago Public Schools, replacing Noemi Donoso, who resigned. Florida Gov. Rick Scott's chief-of-staff, Steve MacNamara (middle center), recently resigned his post after a series of news stories were published that detailed his job performance and handling of contracts and will be replaced by Adam Hollingsworth (middle left), who leads the right-of-way division for Flagler Development Group and is a former chief-of-staff to former Mayor John Peyton of Jacksonville. Eric Swanson, who has been city manager in Roseburg, Oregon, since 2005, has been chosen by the Medford City Council as their choice for city manager, to replace the former Medford city manager, who stepped down in August. David Lussier, the Austin, Texas, Independent School District's executive director for educator quality, has been chosen to become the next superintendent of the Wellesley, Massachusetts schools. Thirty-year law enforcement veteran Eugene Lowery, who currently is deputy chief of the Crystal Lake Police Department, has been named chief of the DeKalb, Illinois, Police Department. Beth Mascitti-Mille (bottom left), who served as a deputy superintendent of teaching and learning in Rochester, New York, with retiring Chicago Public Schools Early Childhood Officer Barbara Bowman, has been named as Bowman's replacement. Dr. Ed Nichols (bottom center), who has served as assistant superintendent in the Decatur, Alabama, schools for the last nine years, has been named superintendent of schools. Linda A. Hicke (bottom right),associate vice president for research at Northwestern University, has been named dean of the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin. Tony O'Rourke, who has served just under two years as South Lake Tahoe's city manager, will be leaving that post to accept the city manager's position in Yakima, Washington. The Maricopa, Arizona, Unified School District has named Steve Chestnut, who has spent more than two decades in administrative posts in Washington State, most recently as superintendent of the Selah School District in Washington, as its new leader. Fort Wayne, Indiana, Fire Chief Pete Kelley, who has been chief since 2007, has announced his retirement, effective Aug. 3.