Oswego trustees direct staff to pursue $25 million Public Works renovation (Option A) with key alternates

Village staff and outside consultants presented two concept designs and budgets for an expanded Oswego Public Works facility and trustees provided direction to proceed with the lower-cost, phased Option A while seeking to include two prioritized alternates.

Steve (village staff member) opened the presentation by describing two options, labeled A and B, that respond to a space-needs study the village received last fall. Option A, with a total project budget presented at about $25,000,000, would renovate the existing public works building and add a smaller new garage and administration wing; Option B would build a larger new facility with a total budget close to $41,000,000. Steve described funding options including general fund reserves, prior-year surplus and water/capital funds and said the team would pursue grants or bonds as needed.

Andy Dogen, principal in charge and chief operating officer of Williams Architects, said the existing building "still has good bones" and that Option A is designed to reuse and remodel existing space while adding a vehicle-storage garage sized for roughly 96 pieces of equipment and room for future expansion. Jack Hayes, president and CEO of Frederick Quinn Corporation (construction manager), presented a concept-level budget and explained that the estimate separates hard-construction costs from soft costs such as permitting and furniture. "The macro numbers we feel very strong about," Hayes said, while noting contingencies and the potential for alternates depending on bid outcomes.

Key numbers and operational details drawn from the presentation and trustee discussion: - Option A total project budget presented: approximately $25,000,000 (base scope). Trustees discussed adding two alternates and agreed those should be prioritized. - Option B total project budget presented: approximately $41,000,000 (full new construction to meet all program needs). - Funding discussed: $18,000,000 in general fund reserves (updated figure cited by staff), an FY2024 surplus of $3,000,000, and roughly $3,500,000 from water and capital funds; additional funds could come from capital-project adjustments, grants or bonds. - Capacity and staffing: Present staff cited in the presentation: 31 employees; projected staff growth by mid-century to about 62 (based on cited CMAP projections); current fleet about 54 vehicles/equipment with an anticipated addition of ~30 units by 2040. Option A was described as providing about 78 indoor vehicle spaces. - Maintenance bays: Option A concept includes six bays; Option B includes eight. - Schedule: presenters estimated approximately 21 to 25 months from board direction to project completion, with phased bidding and potential early site work.

Trustees asked about contractor enforcement, storage for liquid materials, canopy and safety features at the fuel island and the possibility of phasing Option A into Option B in the future. Multiple trustees expressed support for Option A as a fiscally prudent, expandable solution; one trustee said, "I am strongly in favor of option A. I think that gets us everything that we need ... we can do this without taking on a single cent of debt." Another trustee urged including alternates such as the canopy and catwalk for safety, noting their relatively modest cost compared with the project total.

At the end of the discussion a trustee summarized the board's direction: to proceed with Option A and work to include alternates 1 and 2 (the salt dome and canopy/catwalk items) as part of the budget. Presenters said that guidance "gives us the direction we need." No formal roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript; the record reflects trustee consensus and staff direction to continue design and budgeting work based on Option A and the prioritized alternates.

Next steps identified in the meeting: convene a steering committee for design input (aesthetics, materials), complete additional design and construction documents over a multi-month schedule, and sequence bidding so early site work could begin in the fall with building work continuing through winter and beyond.

This item grew out of the village's previously presented space-needs study and the board's ongoing capital planning work; trustees asked staff to return with updated design documents, refined budgets and details about potential grant or bond financing as the project moves forward.