North Bend council approves park construction contracts and $225,000 advance for riverfront project

Council members on Monday approved three contracts for the William Henry Harrison Riverfront Park and authorized an advance of $225,000 to cover imminent invoices while state reimbursements are processed.

Project manager Skip told council contractors are in short supply and bids are higher than projected, and that the village has secured earthworks, surveying and geotechnical contracts needed to begin construction. "$232,500 is their bid," Skip said when describing the earthworks proposal from J and D Rack Excavating. He also described a plan to hold a surety check equal to 10% of the contract instead of purchasing a separate performance bond.

The council approved a time-and-materials surveying contract with Birding and a geotechnical exploration agreement with UES. Council then approved a motion "that the village advance to be reimbursed from ODNR funds, the total amount of 225,000 effective as soon as possible," which passed on a voice vote.

Skip described the project's near-term financing needs in detail. He said the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) grant is the primary funding source, that the village has used a reimbursement process successfully in the past and typically receives state reimbursement in roughly three weeks after submission, and that the immediate shortfall was roughly $100,000 after applying a $10,000 donation from the Duke Foundation. He asked council for a loan-like advance of $90,000 for the gap and an additional revolving cash line (he framed it as up to $135,000) to cover monthly contractor invoices and lump-sum vendor payments.

Skip said the village had already spent and been reimbursed for $85,138 of earlier pre-construction work and expected a pending $780 payment to be reimbursed as well. He told council he would work with village finance staff to submit invoices quickly; "State of Ohio has done a great job of getting our money back in about 3 weeks once we submit," he said.

Council discussion touched on accounting procedures and repayment tracking. One council member recommended closing prior advances before approving new ones so each advance is easy to track; others said the advance should be recorded as an advance to the ODNR capital grant fund and repaid as reimbursements arrive. The motion approved by council advanced the full $225,000 to the ODNR capital grant fund for the park project.

Skip also asked for authority for the mayor to sign smaller upcoming contracts (dumpsters, electrical work) once reviewed by village counsel. He said he expects large monthly invoices as construction starts and that contractors' schedules mean payments will be due earlier than state reimbursement timing allows.

Skip announced he plans to step down as project manager effective Jan. 1, 2026, but said he expects construction to be complete this calendar year if schedules hold.

Council approved the three contracts and the advance as emergency items and directed village staff to track reimbursements and report back to council.