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Decorah tables award for Core Athletic Complex; council gives fundraisers two weeks
Summary
The council unanimously voted to table awarding construction contract for the Core Athletic Complex for two weeks to allow more fundraising and to confirm alternates including sod, a third diamond and a batting cage.
The Decorah City Council voted unanimously on Aug. 4 to table awarding the construction contract for the Core Athletic Complex until its Aug. 18 meeting to give the community more time to raise funds for alternates. City staff reported three bids were received; the low bid from Skyline Construction Inc. totaled $2,097,727.33 for the base project, and awarding all alternates would raise the total to $2,841,006.08. Staff said the low bid is about 21.5% below the engineer's estimate for the base project and about 12.2% below the estimate if all alternates are awarded.
Council members and several speakers emphasized recent private fundraising and the value of allowing a short window to convert donations into additional project scope. Harlan Satrom, who said he is part of the fundraising team, asked council not to approve alternates before the fundraising team had time to pursue additional gifts. Satrom said the community had "been over $600,000 of fundraising" and that another "$575,000" was being pursued. A fundraising committee member told the council the team needs a clear plan that shows what added features could be funded to motivate donors.
Park commissioners recommended awarding alternates 1, 2 and 3 in priority order: sod for one field to make it playable next spring, an additional third diamond, and a batting cage. Council member Neil made the motion to table the award until Aug. 18; the motion was seconded by Wilson and carried on a roll-call vote with all members voting aye.
Why it matters: tabling the award preserves the low bid while giving two weeks for the community to finalize additional private funding that could be used to add scope rather than reduce it. Staff told the council that while contract changes can be made after award, the preference was to allow time to secure funding and then finalize alternates with the selected contractor.
Practical details: city staff said the project includes two 280-foot ball diamonds, eight pickleball courts, fencing, paving, an infiltration basin designed to hold a 100-year storm event, grading and landscaping. The recommended alternates were placed in an order intended to prioritize having at least one playable sod field next spring. No construction contract was awarded at the Aug. 4 meeting.
