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Melbourne council taps ARPA to cover street, water main and radio costs
Summary
Facing bids above budget, the Melbourne City Council voted Sept. 9 to use remaining ARPA funds to cover shortfalls on a street project, a Ketchum water-main replacement and radio/antenna replacements for the water tower; the move leaves about $33,029 in ARPA balance and prompts a future resolution on nuisance abatement.
The Melbourne City Council voted Sept. 9 to use federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to cover cost overruns on a street-repair project and several unbudgeted public-works needs.
Councilmembers said bids exceeded the line items in the fiscal year budget. The street-repair proposal from contractor InRoads totaled $76,838 while the city had budgeted $62,000, creating a shortfall. Needham Excavating quoted $63,280 to replace the water main on Ketchum, where the budgeted amount was $51,000, and a Jetco quote of about $6,350 was presented for radios and an antenna that regulate alarms at the water tower.
On a motion by Hauser, seconded by Beth Opperman, the council agreed to appropriate ARPA funds to cover the roughly $41,582 in additional public-works costs; the motion carried on a unanimous voice vote. Clerk Mary Pothast subsequently reported an ARPA balance of $33,028.77 and was directed to prepare a resolution for the October meeting to consider dedicating the remaining ARPA funds for nuisance-abatement purposes.
Public works staff explained that failing radio and antenna equipment can trigger alarms at the water tower at random times, requiring staff to respond; council members stressed the operational need to replace those units alongside the Ketchum main work.
Council discussed library parking improvements tied to the street project: a concrete option for a single accessible parking space was quoted at $2,772 and replacing the entire area at $8,114. Library Director Brittany Brewer told council that a family member had offered donated labor for concrete but commercial quotes exceeded $15,000. Council considered those options as part of the funding discussion.
The council did not alter the procurement decisions before approving the ARPA appropriation; the clerk was asked to confirm remaining balances and to prepare formal language for the next meeting.
Next step: city staff will proceed with vendor coordination and present the formal resolution on dedicating remaining ARPA funds at the Oct. meeting.
