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Committee approves $3.4 million Ecology Center change order, adds AV and structural work
Summary
The Administration and Public Works Committee approved Change Order No. 2 for the Ecology Center renovation, adding audiovisual systems and unanticipated structural repairs. Staff said adding AV now reduces future rework; the hearing-loop portion was priced at about $15,000.
The Administration and Public Works Committee voted to approve Change Order No. 2 to the contract with Bridal Inc., doing business as Central Rug and Carpet, for the Ecology Center renovation, moving the project budget substantially above its original award.
Committee members and city staff said the extra cost reflects new structural repairs and the decision to add audiovisual systems and an underfloor hearing loop while floors and wiring are exposed. "There is synergy with doing the AV equipment at this time," said Shane Carey, project manager and architect for the Ecology Center project, explaining that retrofitting the hearing loop later would require removing and reinstalling finished flooring.
The change order was discussed at length after Council member Nussbaum raised concerns about the AV budget, and staff walked the committee through the cost breakdown. Carey said the hearing-loop portion costs about $15,000. Carey and Michael Callahan, Deputy Director of Parks and Recreation, said the equipment package itself is roughly $99,000 and that additional wiring, a new closet and installation work drive the remainder of the AV line-item toward the larger figure discussed by the committee.
City Engineer Laura Biggs told the committee the project originally bid at $2,300,000 and that recent change orders — including structural repairs to cracked trusses and additional roof-related work — have increased the total to roughly $3.4 million. Biggs said inspectors have now reviewed the full building and staff do not expect further structural change orders.
Supporters of completing the AV work now said the upgraded rooms will increase capacity for recorded and hybrid meetings and could create a rentable space that helps offset costs over time. "Adding these amenities increases the value of that space as a rental," Callahan said.
Council member Newsom moved the change order; the motion passed by the committee on a 4-0 vote.
Committee members asked staff to provide more detailed cost line items for the AV scope and to confirm whether the new 909 Davis facilities will include similar hearing-loop capability; staff said they would verify.
