The North Ridgeville city engineer told council on Dec. 1 that engineering design costs for the Sugar Ridge Road rehabilitation and a related roundabout increased substantially after consultants submitted cost proposals under ODOT procurement rules. The engineer said the projects were originally scoped in 2023 using a customary 10%-of-construction rule-of-thumb for design fees, but consultant proposals and ODOT-required tasks pushed design estimates toward 25–30% of construction cost.

As a result, the engineer said, the Sugar Ridge design fee rose from an earlier estimate of about $150,000 to $370,000 and the roundabout design fee rose from about $190,000 to $430,000. He attributed much of the increase to additional ODOT requirements including environmental review, utility relocation planning, and extra public engagement, and to higher labor costs in the industry.

The engineer told council that ODOT had awarded roughly $2,230,000 for the roundabout and about $2,000,000 for the rehab project — funding the majority (about 80%) of anticipated construction costs. He said the city will consider waiting to bring legislation until final design estimates are available but noted that accepting ODOT-administered construction dollars remains advantageous even if design costs are higher.

Council members asked no formal questions in the transcript excerpt; the engineer concluded his report and council proceeded to budget and ordinance items.