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At the November 13th City Council meeting, a resident asked me several questions about the boat launch project--specifically about the bidding process, and how we plan to finance the city’s matching share of the grant-funded process. Unfortunately, I was not prepared to answer those questions accurately because I did not have the exact figures at hand. Rather than give the questioner inaccurate figures, I said I would answer the questions later, or at the next meeting. I’m posting the answers to those questions on the city’s web site now, as a way to inform the gentleman who brought them up as well as to provide some information on how and when these decisions were made for any resident of the city who might not have kept up with the process. I commend our Council President, Ed Podmanik, for being very flexible during the Citizens’ Commentary portion of our meetings, by allowing residents to voice their opinions on issues but without allowing abuse of that privilege. The next scheduled council meeting was Nov. 27th, but it was postponed until December 4th, due to the fact that our late, great Ward 1 Councilwoman Joyce Hanks had passed away earlier in the day. I was prepared to answer all of the questions Dec. 4th, but the resident who asked them chose not to attend. So I’d like to spell out all the details here on our web site for that resident, or any interested resident, to get the information:
Q: “How do you go from sealed bids opened on FRIDAY, to a decision made on MONDAY to ODNR’s approval, and passed at a special meeting on TUESDAY? A: Bids were first advertised Aug. 17, but all were rejected as too high. Bids were advertised a second time, after reformulating requirements, on Sept. 27. Sealed bids were opened publicly Oct. 12th at City Hall, with the bidders, the city engineer (K-S Engineering), the mayor and service director all present. Bids included: $1,668,834 (Huffman Construction); $1,441,755 (Martin Enterprises) $1,435,277 (North Coast Construction). The lowest bid, $1,417,972 by Mark Haynes Construction was vetted and declared best by both our service director and city engineer. I asked council to schedule a brief special meeting before our regularly scheduled finance committee and work session meetings on October 16, in order to approve the lowest and best bid and start the in-water phase of construction before the weather becomes inclement. We are under a completion deadline to finish the project under terms of the state grant and we hope to get the in-water part of the project--the ramp and seawall--done before the lake freezes. We’ll do the on-shore work, the parking lots, etc. in the spring, and, weather permitting, in plenty of time to meet our completion deadline.
Q: What about cost? (A number of questions were asked and statements made on Oct. 13th that indicated that my past statements about how much the city’s share of the construction cost would be, and about how it will be paid.) A. The fact is that the amount of the city’s share of the cost changed several times over the past four years, due mainly to increased construction costs (inflation) and changes to the plan that were required either by ODNR, the Corps of Engineers, Coastal Management and Ohio EPA. Adjusting to all the changes in requirements and plans took time and the process was further extended by delays in receiving the required permits from all of the state and federal agencies involved. All of that contributed to increases in the city’s matching share of the project. Also, back when the Park Board first applied for the grant (which was rejected three times before it was approved) we believed we could offset some of the matching funds with “in-kind” work performed by our Service Department. In the end, “in-kind” matches were not allowed. The final amount of the city’s share (and contingencies will probably add to this before we’re done) is a $552,972 share of the $1,417,972 total cost of constructing the boat launch ramp. We do not have that much money in the 265 Parks New Construction account, so Council approved a $500,000 note backed by our 401 Capital Improvement Fund to make up the difference. Even if there is zero new construction to bolster the 265 account, a worst-case scenario, is that the 401 account, funded at the rate of about $150,000 annually by inside tax mills, can repay the note in three and a half years.
Q: “Why don’t the plans show any source of electricity?” A: The only lighting involved in the in-water part of the project in this phase is the navigational aid lamps on the seawall that mark the entrance to the ramp. These navigational lights will be solar-powered, so no source of electricity will be needed.
Q: “Why is there no gate house in the plans?” A: No gate house is needed because there will be no launch fees to collect. Our intention all along, from the very first discussions at Park Board meetings in 2001, has been to provide a free launch ramp for our residents and to attract more non-residents to the area. We’ll be holding another community forum at 7 p.m. Dec. 20th, at City Hall, to ask residents for their suggestions as to what they’d like to see replace the empty storefronts in Shoreway Shopping Center. Those suggestions will inform our urban renewal planner for that area. The plan is being put together with a grant acquired through NOACA’s Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative. This project was not done in a hurry. The Park Board began working toward the grant process well over six years ago. Sheffield Lake’s Planning Commission worked long and hard to formulate our Master Plan; they held well-attended community consensus meetings and conducted citizen surveys which garnered over 1,800 responses. More residents responded to those surveys than voted in our last election. More Sheffield Lake residents responded to our Master Plan surveys than Lorain County residents responded to the County’s Master Plan Survey. Clearly, this community wants this boat launch ramp. Surveys and meetings informed all decisions, and the boat launch project was dealt with by City Council and nearly every other city board and committee all through the long process of applying for grants and planning these improvements to Community Park. My own personal thoughts aside, our city’s Master Plan calls for a boat launch ramp. So a boat launch ramp is what we’re building. When this phase of the process is done we’ll continue to apply for grants to help us add a boardwalk and other amenities to Community Park in the future.
Listen to the December 4th Mayor's report to City Council
Here is a list of city meetings that helped us get to this point: Council November 9, 2004 November 23, 2004 December 14, 2004 February 8, 2005 May 24, 2005 August 16, 2005 September 27, 2005 October 25, 2005 December 13, 2005 February 14, 2006 April 11, 2006 May 9, 2006 August 15, 2006 November 14, 2006 November 28, 2006 January 9, 2007 February 27, 2007 April 10, 2007 May 22, 2007 June 26, 2007 July 10, 2007 July 24, 2007 September 11, 2007 October 9, 2007 October 16, 2007 October 23, 2007 November 13, 2007
Worksession November 16, 2004 December 21, 2004 April 19, 2005 February 21, 2006 March 20, 2007 September 18, 2007
Finance July 6, 2005 January 17, 2006 December 19, 2006 May 15, 2007 September 18, 2007 November 20, 2007
Roads & Drains May 1, 2006 November 6, 2006 December 4, 2006 February 5, 2007
Park Board April 19, 2004 February 21, 2005 March 21, 2005 April 18, 2005 May 16, 2005 October 17, 2005 November 21, 2005 December 19, 2005 April 17, 2006 June 19, 2006 September 18, 2006 November 20, 2006 April 16, 2007 May 21, 2007 June 18, 2007 October 15, 2007
Planning November 17, 2005 June 21, 2007 October 18, 2007
Ordinance June 7, 2007 September 6, 2007 October 4, 2007
Buildings & Lands September 2, 2004 September 8, 2005 April 3, 2006 November 2, 2006
Stormwater Utility September 22, 2005 December 21, 2006 May 10, 2007
Safety July 6, 2005 September 6, 2006 November 7, 2007
2006 City of Sheffield Lake, Ohio |