Council accepts low bid for two pickleball courts under Bowery, contingent on CDBG approval

Garrett (city staff/engineer) presented bid results for a park improvement package that included two pickleball courts under the Bowery, a sand‑volleyball court, playground work and related site items. Three contractors submitted bids; the proposal to construct only the two pickleball courts and related immediate scope (park and tennis courts schedule) produced a low combined construction bid of $193,320. Garrett told the council the city’s available construction funding (after accounting for engineering and contingencies) could cover work limited to the two courts but that the original CDBG application included a larger package.

Councilmember Garrett (presenter) said the CDBG program generally expects the scope funded in an award to be completed as proposed and that the city had asked the grant administrator whether the award could be used for a reduced scope limited to the two courts. The council voted Sept. 18 to accept the lowest bid for the “park and tennis courts” schedule and to authorize staff to move forward only if CDBG confirms the reduced scope is permitted.

The motion passed on a recorded roll call (Carrie, Rod, Kim and Jake voting yes). Staff will notify the council when the CDBG administrator replies and will return with a construction schedule once the grant eligibility for the reduced scope is confirmed. Council members discussed tradeoffs of doing only part of the Bowery concrete versus replacing the entire Bowery slab and noted that post‑tensioned court construction is standard for public pickleball courts to avoid cracking and future settlement.