Task force presses staff on police station change orders, AECOM reimbursement and I&I spending

During the Jan. 5 meeting members pressed staff for details about change orders on the new police station and the city's approach to reclaiming costs from designers or insurers. Roosevelt raised concerns about a $321,910 change order and asked where the money will come from; staff said change orders have been submitted to the architect of record for reimbursement and legal counsel is handling claims and negotiations.

Staff referenced earlier, larger payments and approvals related to the project and reiterated that reimbursement claims are being pursued through the architect and attorneys. "All costs associated with the additional work... will be submitted to the architect of record for full reimbursement," a staff member summarized during the discussion. Members asked staff to include the police station reimbursement status on the project's tracking line in future agendas.

Separately, members reviewed I&I (inflow and infiltration) work funded by bond and CIP accounts. Patricia Jolley presented color-coded CIP spending reports and said some program monies are used to create subprojects (CCTV, smoke testing, rehabilitation task orders). Members questioned whether certain budgets—particularly a $23,000,000 line associated with I&I work—were primarily for planning or for construction; staff said the I&I fund is intended to identify and generate rehab projects and that some projects can be executed within a year, depending on contracts and advertised procurements.

The task force asked staff to report more clearly on how bond funds are allocated to project implementation versus planning or master-plan studies and to track reimbursement progress from third parties for the police station work. Members did not take a formal vote on funding reallocations; they asked staff for follow-up reports in upcoming meetings.