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Council abandons current federal 1800 South sidewalk plan, seeks city-funded alternative
Summary
After weeks of review, council members voted to abandon the federal-funded 1800 South sidewalk design and pursue a city-funded, self-contained alternative, citing rising costs and options to build on the golf-course side or negotiate easements; staff had estimated the city’s portion at roughly $372,080 and noted about $80,000 was already spent.
The Richfield City Council voted to abandon the current federal-funded design for the 1800 South sidewalk project and directed staff to develop a city-funded alternative that would rely on local resources and potentially different alignments.
"I would motion that we abandon the current form of the 1800 South project as it currently stands," said a council member (speaker 6) during a protracted discussion of rising costs, scheduling and design options. Another council member (speaker 2) seconded the motion and asked staff to pursue a locally run project model.
Staff and council members discussed cost figures during the debate. Staff (speaker 16) said the project needs additional funds to proceed and that the city's portion was roughly $372,080, with approximately $80,000 already spent on design; members described an additional outlay on the order of several hundred thousand dollars if the federal plan continued unchanged. Council debate focused on alternatives — building on the golf-course side, seeking easements from landowners to avoid federal requirements, or doing the work “in-house” to reduce costs.
Supporters of abandoning the federal plan said the city retains more control and could save money by using local resources. Skeptics warned against losing momentum and suggested that property owners or the county might help if negotiations proceed.
The motion to cancel further spending on the federal-funded approach carried; the chair instructed staff to draft a formal letter cancelling the current plan and to return with options for a city-funded project.
Next steps: staff will provide a formal cancellation letter to the federal project contacts, prepare alternatives for a city-funded sidewalk plan, and report back to the council with engineering and cost estimates.
