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Council hears higher-than-budgeted police station bids; members question infrastructure funding priorities
Summary
Council members were briefed on initial construction bids for a proposed new police station. The lowest bid reported was about $2.2 million, above the $1.6 million that had been proposed from infrastructure reserves, prompting questions about funding sources and potential property sales to offset costs.
Council members discussed bids for a proposed new police station after staff reported the lowest bid exceeded the amount currently staged in the draft budget.
Staff said the budget currently includes $1.6 million in infrastructure reserves for a new police station, but that bids received the day of the workshop showed the lowest bid at about $2.2 million. Staff said they would attempt value engineering to reduce the cost and aim for about $1.9 million, but acknowledged the town would need to re-examine funding if the final contract exceeds available reserves.
Council members raised questions about alternative funding and whether remodeling the existing facility would be less expensive. Staff and the police chief (speaking in the meeting) said previous assessments had cautioned that remodeling existing structures could approach or exceed new-construction costs because of demolition and reconstruction expenses and limited room for growth at the current site.
Councilors noted prior plans to sell certain town properties — including older town buildings and the current police station location — to help fund new capital projects. Staff said the marketability of the existing police station had been assessed previously and that updated appraisals would be obtained when the council moved forward. No final funding decision was made at the workshop; staff said the bid results and potential value-engineering measures will be a focus for follow-up work prior to final budget adoption.
