Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Lowell amends budget, authorizes MDOT agreement and awards trail engineering contract
Summary
The Lowell City Council approved an end-of-year budget amendment and authorized an MDOT agreement for Lori Gail and Brook Street, and approved a construction engineering contract for the Larret/Fred Meyer Trail after staff recommended the lower bid; council recorded unanimous affirmative votes on the measures.
The Lowell City Council approved a package of routine measures Tuesday, adopting an end-of-year budget amendment, authorizing the city to enter a Category B agreement with the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for Lori Gail and Brook Street, and awarding construction engineering services for the Larret/Fred Meyer Trail to Williams and Works.
Mike presented the annual budget amendment, saying, "this is your annual end of the year budget amendment," and walking the council through the numbers: amended general fund projected revenue of $4,552,000 and projected expenditures of about $4,738,000. He said the amendment relies on roughly $292,000 from excess fund balance and results in a projected surplus of about $106,000 for the fiscal year. He noted higher police staffing costs and carryover Downtown Development Authority projects as drivers of increased expenditures, and cited higher-than-expected interest receipts and a higher personal property tax replacement reimbursement on the revenue side.
The council discussed specific allocations, including a $50,000 payment toward a pension liability and a $170,000 wear-and-road allocation. One councilor noted uncertainty about neighborhood road funding tied to lower-than-expected marijuana-tax receipts and reductions in state revenue sharing; staff said that shortfall was not included in the current amendment and would appear in cash-flow planning for the next fiscal year.
On the MDOT item, staff described a proposed agreement that would allow the city’s street administrator to sign and enter into an agreement with MDOT to advance Lori Gail and Brook Street under MDOT’s Category B program. The council voted to adopt Resolution 1226 authorizing the agreement.
Fred Meyer of Trail Engineering told the council the city solicited proposals for construction engineering services for the Larret/Fred Meyer Trail and received two bids: "Williams and Works for $297,215 and Row for $393,000," he said. Given higher-than-expected construction bids, Meyer recommended selecting Williams and Works to preserve cost savings and continuity; staff said MDOT had agreed to cover a funding gap to enable the project to proceed. The council approved the Williams and Works contract not to exceed $297,215.
Votes at a glance - Motion to excuse Council member Jim Sal — approved (members present voted to excuse him). - Consent agenda — approved by voice/roll call. - Resolution 1126 (budget amendment) — motion moved, seconded, and approved by recorded affirmative votes. - Resolution 1226 (MDOT agreement) — approved by recorded affirmative votes. - Contract award to Williams and Works for construction engineering (Larret/Fred Meyer Trail) — approved by recorded affirmative votes.
The council did not attach additional conditions to the approvals; staff said it will proceed with executing the MDOT agreement and the Williams and Works contract to move the trail project forward. The meeting then moved to discussion items and public comments.
