The Huntington Beach City Council voted to approve a construction contract for a vertical facilities project (described by staff as a locker-room renovation) with a base construction cost of $1,099,477 and a 20% contingency, yielding a total estimated project cost of approximately $1,300,000.

Councilman Kennedy questioned staff about the larger contingency relative to a sewer contract (which had a 10% contingency), saying the city should guard against low bids that later inflate project costs through change orders. Kennedy said, "There shouldn't be too many surprises," and pressed staff on how change orders would be evaluated.

Staff responded that vertical projects carry more unknowns — flooring, plumbing and HVAC inside existing walls — and that change orders are reviewed individually. The staff explanation: the city compares requested change-order amounts to other estimates and will return to council for authority if costs would exceed the approved contingency or available budget.

Nut graf: The council’s approval reflects staff judgment that the locker-room renovation has above-average uncertainty compared with linear infrastructure (like sewer), requiring a larger contingency; the council also adopted a practice of evaluating change orders and returning to the council if the contingency cap is exceeded.

During the item Councilmember Kennedy sought assurance the city would not allow a low bid to be used to later obtain more money without adequate oversight. Staff said they evaluate each change order and obtain comparables to ensure reasonableness. The motion to move the item was seconded and the item passed by roll call: Twining — yes; Kennedy — yes; Mayor Pro Tem McKeon — yes; Mayor Pat Burns — aye; Vandermark — yes; Williams — yes (Gruel absent).

Ending: The contract moves forward with explicit council direction that change orders be reviewed and that any request exceeding the contingency return to council for approval.