Aberdeen council approves Zoom upgrade, bridge and road contracts, several airport projects

The City of Aberdeen City Council on Monday approved a series of contracts and payments to update council chamber technology, advance the Tenth Avenue Bridge project, fund street mill-and-overlay work and proceed with multiple airport construction and engineering tasks.

The most prominent votes included authorization to accept a proposal from CTI for council chamber Zoom integration at an approximate cost of $35,000; approval of IMEG’s not-to-exceed $209,309.21 construction-administration proposal for the Tenth Avenue Bridge replacement; acceptance of Jensen Rock and Sand’s $462,963.20 bid for mill-and-overlay work; and several airport-related professional-services agreements and invoices to Helms & Associates, Ephraimson Electric and Mead & Hunt.

Why it matters: the CTI work is intended to improve remote participation and the city’s public recordings; the IMEG and Jensen contracts push ahead pavement and bridge work planned for this construction season; and the airport items cover runway, apron, road and terminal work that the city said will be largely grant-funded.

CTI Zoom integration City staff described the CTI proposal as an integration of Zoom with the council chambers’ existing (2014-era) hardware. Staff said the vendor built the current proprietary system and can integrate remote participants so they can view in-person presentations and have their participation captured in public recordings. Staff recommended approval and said funding would come from cable-franchise community-access (PEG) funds.

Councilwoman Fulberg moved approval of the CTI proposal; Councilman Ward seconded. The motion carried on a roll call with one recorded dissent and the remainder in favor.

Tenth Avenue Bridge — IMEG Robin (city staff) explained IMEG’s proposal is a not-to-exceed fee for construction administration billed by time and materials; the firm’s charge will not exceed $209,309.21. DOT participation was noted; staff said the city typically pays about 20% of such costs. Council approved the IMEG agreement on a roll-call vote.

Mill-and-overlay bid — Jensen Rock & Sand Robin said the Jensen Rock & Sand bid of $462,963.20 is well below the engineer’s estimate, and that the city has about $800,000 budgeted and intends to maximize work scope via change orders. Council approved awarding the work to Jensen Rock & Sand.

Airport projects and invoices Council approved multiple airport items presented by Rich (city staff): two Helms invoices ($496.09 for runway rehabilitation/lighting and $2,153.30 for GA apron reconstruction phase 2), an agreement with Helms for terminal access road and parking-lot rehabilitation ($423,465.59), an agreement for terminal renovations ($260,561.43), payment to Ephraimson Electric ($3,083.16) for lighting equipment replacement, and two $5,000 payments to Mead & Hunt for independent fee evaluations tied to the terminal projects. Staff repeatedly noted that many of these costs are reimbursable under federal AIP grants (90% federal, 5% state, 5% local) or otherwise grant-funded.

Other business Council approved the monthly bills list and several consent-calendar items (including nominating petitions). The council also recorded a ceremonial proclamation for National Senior Games Week.

Votes at a glance - CTI Zoom integration (approx. $35,000): Motion approved (mover: Councilwoman Fulberg; second: Councilman Ward). Vote recorded as carried; one dissent recorded. - IMEG construction administration (Tenth Avenue Bridge) — not to exceed $209,309.21: Motion approved (mover: Councilman Ronan; second: Councilman Ward). Roll-call approval. - Jensen Rock & Sand — mill and overlay — $462,963.20: Motion approved (mover: Councilman Ronan; second: Councilwoman Liebelt). Roll-call approval. - Helms & Associates — multiple airport payments/agreements (invoices and professional services totaling project-line items): Motions approved (various movers/seconds); roll-call approvals. Funding noted as 90% federal/5% state/5% local on AIP items. - Ephraimson Electric — $3,083.16 (lighting replacement): Motion approved (mover: Councilman Ronan; second: Councilman Ward); roll-call approval. - Mead & Hunt — $5,000 (independent fee evaluation): Motion approved; roll-call approval. - Approval to pay monthly bills: Motion approved (one abstention recorded).

Council comments and staff clarifications Staff and councilors clarified funding sources and vendor selection. For CTI, staff explained the vendor built the proprietary system and a local vendor could not be used without replacing the entire system. For the IMEG work, staff noted IMEG is on the DOT-approved consultant list and has local presence. For the Jensen mill-and-overlay work, staff said the bid is substantially below the engineer’s estimate and the city will consider additional change orders to increase scope within available budget.

What’s next Council authorized staff to sign the agreements and process the invoices as presented. Several items (notably airport work) will proceed with reimbursement through federal and state programs where applicable.