Council approves $159,515 grant-funded renovation of community center restrooms and concession stand

The Berkeley City Council on Aug. 18 approved a $159,515 contract with Allied Building Services to renovate restrooms inside the community center and to reopen and renovate the concession stand at Community 1 baseball field. The council approved Motion M6925 unanimously after staff said the project is fully funded by the State of Michigan fiscal 2024 Community Enhancement Grant.

Alex Brown, facilities manager, told council the concession restrooms have been closed since around the COVID period and “to say they need a redo is a understatement.” Brown said Allied has completed past projects for the city and that staff expect a 60–90 day turnaround; he said he is “leaning more towards 60” days but that the contractor will have a buffer to complete the work.

City Manager Van Vleck and Brown told the council that the project will renovate two bathrooms included in the scope: the two restrooms at the concession stand and renovations to restrooms inside the community center itself. Brown said other restrooms will remain available during construction and that city staff will coordinate scheduling with the recreation superintendent, Dan McMinn, to minimize disruption to programs.

Council member Hennen asked about next steps for making the concession stand operable year-round; Brown and Van Vleck explained that there is money remaining in the grant to add heating and winterization after the initial renovation so the facility can be used outside the baseball season. Van Vleck added that reallocations from an originally planned parking-lot improvement freed funds for the current scope and that staff worked with U.S. Representative Macomb County (McMorrow's office was referenced) to reallocate the grant funds, which required administrative approvals.

Motion M6925 was made by Council Member Patterson with support from Council Member Hennen. Roll-call votes recorded by Miss Mitchell were: Hennen — yes; Patterson — yes; Villani — yes; Baker — yes; Black — yes; Gavin — yes; Dean — yes. The motion passed.

The contract award lists Allied Building Services, 1081 Howard Street, Detroit, Michigan 48216, as the contractor and identifies MyDeal contract 01044 as the procurement vehicle cited in the staff memo. Staff said the project is a capital priority listed in the city’s CIP and that construction scheduling will be coordinated to avoid conflicts with seasonal programs.

Council did not discuss specific line-item budgets beyond the grant funding but asked staff to coordinate schedules and confirmed there will be restroom access available in the building while work is underway.