HRA tables funding decision for Regency heating study after debate

The board debated options to address the aging single‑boiler heating system at the 15‑unit Regency building and voted to table a proposal for an engineering study.

The director outlined an engineering proposal to evaluate the system, create a work write-up for contractors and produce options including separate temperature controls for individual units. “Provide existing conditions, and then include recommendations and narrative of the work to provide separate temperature controls for each tenant space,” the director said.

Several board members questioned whether spending $3,500 on an engineering study made sense if the likely recommendations would be expensive to implement. “If there's a high probability that what's gonna come back from the engineer is something we can't afford, why spend $3,500?” one board member said. Others proposed getting quick contractor walkthroughs or soliciting bids with alternates to estimate replacement costs without the study.

The director noted roughly $86,000 in grant funds remained that could be applied to the project and that matching funds would be required under the small cities program. Board members discussed alternatives such as mini‑split heat pumps, recognizing they have limitations in very cold temperatures and may still require an operating boiler as backup.

After discussion, a motion to table consideration of the $3,500 study until the next meeting passed on a voice vote. Staff was asked to pursue lower‑cost contractor input and return with more detailed cost estimates and potential bid alternates at the next meeting.

Next step: staff will arrange contractor walkthrough(s) or alternate bid solicitations and return options at the June meeting.