The Soldotna City Council voted Wednesday to award a contract to CIC, Inc. for the creation of a new parking lot in front of the Aspen Hotel in Soldotna.

Council members last year approved a 20-year lease agreement between the city and the Aspen Hotel for the repurpose of a vacant lot in front of the hotel as a parking lot. Conceptual designs presented to council members then show a 70-space lot with greenspace at the site.

The City of Soldotna solicited bids for the project during February. A project manual accompanying the city’s request for proposals shows designs for a wooden wall separating the lot from the Sterling Highway, crosswalks and spaces for spruce trees and ornamental vegetation.

According to a March 1 memo from Project Manager C.O. Rudstrom to City Manager Stephanie Queen, the scope of work described in the CIC, Inc. award includes stormwater piping, site grading, placement of a concrete curb and gutter, asphalt paving and parking lot striping.

In all, the city received four bids for the project. CIC, Inc. was the lowest bidder and will complete the project for just over $300,000. Landscaping and tree planting work is needed for final completion of the lot, Rudstrom wrote, but will be advertised and bid as a separate project.

Efforts to boost parking capacity in Soldotna come as the city looks to create a new “main street” parallel to the Kenai River. The project would address about 85 acres of land running along the Kenai River from Soldotna Creek Park to the Sterling Highway Bridge, and was the subject of city brainstorming sessions earlier this year.

Wednesday’s full meeting of the Soldotna City Council can be streamed on the city’s website at soldotna.org.

Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.