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Facade contractors seek lower daily lift fee; city: fee set by earlier resolution and staff cannot reduce it
Summary
Owners of the Thompson Block building asked the Livingston City Commission for help negotiating a lower daily rate on a $100 lift rental required for façade work; city staff said the fee is set in a prior fee resolution and staff has no authority to reduce it.
Tracy and Dave Raich, owners of the Thompson Block building, told the commission they are moving forward with a façade restoration and asked whether the city would negotiate a lower daily fee to rent the municipal lift required for the work. The Raiches said their contractor cannot work nights and the $100‑per‑day lift fee substantially increases construction carrying costs; they compared that to daily parking citations at $25 per day and asked whether a different arrangement was possible.
City Manager James Gager told the Raiches the lift fee is established by a fee resolution adopted about two years earlier at the request of the commission and that the fee resolution does not delegate authority to the city manager or staff to reduce or waive the charge. Gager suggested the finance director is another department contact for questions about fee calculations and noted staff would reach out to the property owners the next morning to provide contact information and next steps.
No formal change to the fee was made at the meeting. The Raiches were advised to follow up with city staff and the finance director to explore options. The commission did not vote on the matter during the meeting.
