Council weighs Ballinger Park viewing platform after bids exceed budget; staff recommend moving forward with reallocated funds

Parks Project Manager Danelle Dio presented the bid results and financing options for the Ballinger Park West Side Viewing Platform and Trails project, explaining that all three bids received in April exceeded the approved project budget and that staff recommended awarding the construction contract and amending the project budget to cover the shortfall.

Dio described the project as the next phase of the Ballinger Park master plan, which the city adopted in 2015 and which envisions new trails, a park portal, and a wildlife viewing platform that extends from the shoreline over shallow water toward where Hall Creek meets the lake. The design team built the plan after several public meetings and agency coordination; the project required extensive shoreline permitting from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Washington State Department of Ecology and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Dio told council that the low, responsive construction bid came from Sunset Grill Construction at just over $2.2 million; with an 8 percent construction contingency, staff estimated total construction cost near $2.4 million. The project’s approved capital budget including design, permitting, administration and construction was about $1.5 million; staff had already spent roughly $400,000 on design. To close the gap, Dio said staff proposed reallocating more than $1.03 million from other CIP allocations and available balances to bring the project budget to approximately $2.5 million and then award the contract.

Dio warned of tradeoffs to other approaches: rebidding or splitting the project into land and water components might not produce lower prices and could force staff to renegotiate or risk losing partner funds and permits. She cited secured contributions from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO), Premera Blue Cross and the City of Edmonds that could be jeopardized by a significant delay or scope change. Dio recommended moving forward to preserve current grant commitments and the approvals already in hand.

Public comment and council discussion focused on site character, public access and cost. Resident Dale Jeremiah, who signed up earlier to speak, urged the council to inspect the site before approving the project. Jeremiah had earlier commented during public comment that the proposed viewing platform location “looks secluded” and warned of trash and late‑night use; at the presentation he told council, “don’t put this on the consent calendar for next week. Go out there and look at this and say, you know, what’s this place gonna be like at midnight on a Saturday night out there?”

Councilmembers asked detailed questions about the design and permitting. Dio described the construction materials and path types included in the design: asphalt approaches at the park portal, a series of boardwalk segments that connect the inner urban trail and the bridge to the viewing platform, gravel and mulch pathways around the ponds, and the curved viewing platform that will launch from shore and extend over shallow lake water to provide wildlife viewing opportunities. She noted that the West Side area includes wetlands that require elevated boardwalk elements in places, which increases cost.

Several councilmembers asked whether alternative funding or rebidding had been considered; Dio said staff evaluated alternatives but found three practical risks to delaying: contractor pricing trends (costs may rise further), the potential loss or reduction of partner grant funds, and the need to revisit Army Corps permitting (the project uses a nationwide permit that carries time‑limited validity). Councilmembers also discussed Evergreen playfield projects and other planned CIP items that provided possible sources of reallocated park impact fees.

On the staff recommendation to amend the budget and award the contract to Sunset Grill LLC, several councilmembers asked for more public discussion and a site visit. Councilmember Murray asked that the item be available for council discussion rather than passed on the consent calendar; council voted to remove the award from the consent calendar and schedule it for a council hearing on June 5. Councilmembers asked staff to provide the CIP priority list, clarify exactly which projects would be deferred or backfilled by the reallocation, and to offer a site visit opportunity before the June 5 discussion.

Dio summarized the proposed timeline if the council approves the award on June 5: execute a contract in June, issue notice to proceed in summer and begin construction in summer/fall. She said the bid and permit environment — and the fact that about $400,000 has already been spent on design and permitting — informed staff’s recommendation to move forward with reallocated funds to avoid losing grant commitments and additional cost escalation.

Council members who supported moving ahead said the project has long been a community priority in the Ballinger Park master plan and that delaying could jeopardize grant funding and increase costs; others pressed for on‑site review and additional public outreach before authorizing the contract. The council scheduled the item for discussion at the June 5 meeting.