A Kodiak landscaper won $19,500 to resurface the base softball field

The outfield at Coast Guard Base Kodiak has low spots. Five companies bid for the chance to fill them.

S & S Enterprise Inc., a Kodiak landscaper that works around town as Kodiak Lawn Care & Snow Removal, won the $19,500 job on Aug. 19. It has 30 days to spread 2,500 square feet of topsoil and sand mix across the dips, roll them flat and hydro-seed the result, under a stormwater permit meant to keep the soil from washing off.

When anyone gets to play again is a separate question. Neither the award record nor the July 30 solicitation says when the field returns to use, and hydro-seeded grass takes its time coming in.

The softball field is one of 12 recreation facilities the base runs for more than 3,500 active-duty and retired personnel, civilians and dependents.

The base's own contracting office bought the work under simplified acquisition rules, with no set-aside. S & S was founded in 2008 and has held federal work in Kodiak since 2016. Its other current federal order, at the NOAA Fisheries yard, is worth $21,600 and ends Sept. 30.