News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
The Sisters City Council approved engineering plans drafted by Mortier Engineering of Coos Bay in a 3-1 vote at their Thursday, July 25, meeting. The approval of plans is a key step in a long process that began in April, 1994, when the city accepted the donation from Joe Fought of the Memory Lanes Bowling Alley for a new city hall.
Much remains to be done.
The city has budgeted $501,500 for the city hall remodel project in the current fiscal year. A large portion of the funds are to come from the sale of the current city hall property, last appraised at $190,000. The city hopes to get $250,000 from the sale. That property must be put on the market and public hearings held before it is sold.
The city has accumulated about $170,000 from transfers from other departments such as water and garbage. Councilors hope to raise about $80,000 more from community donations. Another $1,500 is budgeted out of earned interest.
So far, the city has spent almost $16,000 on the city hall plans. Plans designed by an apprentice draftsman cost $5,000, but they proved unusable except for a basic floorplan that was modified by Mortier Engineering. Mortier's detailed engineering plans cost $10,838.96.
As the project is prepared to go out for bid, the council is left to ponder how the work is to be funded.
Mayor Dave Moyer cautioned the city council Thursday night that "we do not have the cash in hand to accept any of these bids." He noted that Emil Mortier, head of the city's engineering consulting firm, had warned the mayor that the city needs to know where funds are coming from in order to accept a bid.
"The council is really going to have to make a decision as to what they're going to do," City Administrator Barbara Warren told The Nugget. "They're going to have to decide how they're going to come up with the money."
Councilor Gary Miller, who voted against approval of the plans, advocated a cautious approach.
"I think it's an incredibly ambitious plan to put through and use the general fund in one fell swoop," Miller said Thursday night. He believes the city should look further into modular construction or phased construction to cut costs.
He said he would like to have plans drafted under several "scenarios" at varying costs, designing the project for the cash on hand.
But Councilor Jean Cooper thinks that kind of approach involves too much guesswork. She believes it's necessary and appropriate to design the project completely then put it out for bid in order to establish a true cost for the project.
Cooper told The Nugget that she envisions a scenario where offers come in on the current city hall at about the same time bids are coming in on the remodel project.
"When those things happen," Cooper said, "and we have real numbers -- I mean real solid numbers -- then we have something to work with. We know what the deficit is going to be. At that point, I would think it's our responsibility to find the deficit, if there is one.
"I don't think we can second guess the project until we know what it's going to cost," Cooper said.
According to Cooper, the project can be modified "without re-inventing the wheel" if it proves to cost more than the city has available.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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