Lake Placid’s Main Street is seen in June. (Enterprise photo — Elizabeth Izzo)

LAKE PLACID — Five companies have submitted bids for Lake Placid’s Main Street overhaul.

The companies’ bids were being reviewed by the village engineer on Monday, Mayor Craig Randall told the Board of Trustees. The board is expected to vote on a contract at its next meeting.

The companies who submitted bids are based in Wilton, Troy, Plattsburgh, Canastota and Ticonderoga. All of the bids appear to exceed the expected $8 million price tag for this project, many of them by several million dollars.

The project would rebuild old water pipes so they can support increased use, rebuild the storm drainage system along the street to better protect Mirror Lake from road salt runoff, and revamp the street’s look with new sidewalks, more visible crosswalks and green space.

The project would require the busy street to be reduced to one way, one-lane traffic at times. Traffic may be diverted onto Hillcrest Avenue or Old Military Road.

Randall told the village board that he has asked outside auditors to take a look at the project financials, including state grant funding received for this project.

The Main Street project was expected to break ground in September, but the village’s engineering team suggested that contractors be given more time to submit bids. Two potential bidders asked that the deadline be extended further.

Paired with a built-in bid requirement that the chosen contractor temporarily halt work for July and August, at the peak of the summer tourism season, Randall said in August that it’s possible the two-year project could extend into 2023. Village officials, including Randall, had hoped that most of the work would be done before the 2023 Winter World University Games.

This streetscape and infrastructure improvement plan will change the aesthetics, water infrastructure, environmental impact, pedestrian experience and on-street parking availability of this region’s busiest business district. A Main Street task force, with member chosen by the village, was formed last year to provide feedback throughout the planning process, which has been ongoing for years, but the project has not yet been brought to the broader community for public input. Randall has said a public hearing isn’t legally required but has talked for months about hosting a public meeting to present plans to the public. A public meeting that was scheduled earlier this year was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.