Council abandons federal 1800 South sidewalk plan, directs city-funded alternative

The Richfield City Council voted to abandon the current federal 1800 South sidewalk and bikeway project and directed staff to pursue a self-funded, city-controlled alternative.

Council members said inflation and federal procurement requirements had increased the project cost substantially since the design began and left the city exposed to additional contingencies. One council member summarized staff estimates that the design needed roughly $4,047,600 more than the budgeted amount; another said the city had already spent about $80,000 on design and that continuing with the federal process could add substantially more.

After discussion about alternatives and potential construction on the golf-course side of the street or other city-controlled alignments, one council member moved to abandon the current federal plan and approve work on a new, self-contained city-funded project. A second supported the motion. The council instructed staff to notify the grant administrators and produce a formal letter cancelling the city’s participation in the current form of the project.

City staff noted the city still controls some design work and right-of-way documents that could be reused for a city-funded project. Staff also advised that federal grants generally require an offer of compensation for right-of-way takings but that property owners rarely refuse reasonable offers.

Council members asked staff to analyze a parallel option that would place a sidewalk on the golf-course side of 1800 South, which council members said could be cheaper and avoid federal procurement constraints. Council members asked staff to return with a plan showing cost comparisons and a timeline for a city-funded alternative.

The council’s action does not prohibit future use of federal funds for other projects; it ended the current federal procurement and design pathway for the 1800 South project and directed staff to pursue a locally funded replacement.