Victoria MN Newspaper

Said Mayor Tom O'Connor, "We've studied this for months. You do what you can to make options available to people." In regard to the possibility of changing the site location, he added, "We need to understand the site lines."

Said Councilmember Crowley, "There needs to be a dialogue to understand the concerns and that the issue is resolved. Do we have a problem? If so, how do we mitigate it?"

If moving the building back from where it was bid means extra cost, the maximum amount to be financed remains at $5,615,000. "Financing is a combination of bonding and cash," said Mr. Uram. There is $594,000 in a Revenue Stabilization Fund, according to Finance Manager Kelly Grinnell, that can be used to help cover potential extra cost. Discussion continued on April 28th.

LOOKING FOR BEST PAD SITING

OF PUBLIC WORKS BUILDING AT BAVARIA ROAD

On April 28th, Victoria city councilmembers continued discussion on just exactly where the new Public Works Facility might be situated on the city-owned property on Bavaria Road, purchased last year from the Hartman Tree Farm. A decision is expected on May 12th.

City Manager Don Uram said that, in looking at a possible relocation of the building pad that was bid and approved in April, "more civil work, utility work, and water management costs" need to be considered.

Said Mr. Uram, "We have professionals working on this. The work is currently being done. We hope to give you a report on May 12th as to the cost that might be associated with it."

Mr. Uram said the current building site (the one that went out for bids) is 50 feet from Bavaria Road, whereas the original building site is 150 feet from the road. There are variations in elevations and necessary grading work to accommodate the relocating of the Public Works facility.

Said Councilmember Jim Crowley, "I was out walking the site and was surprised to see how little room there is, to the road, for a row of trees. What about moving the building back to accommodate two or three rows of trees? One resident asked to have the building moved all the way to the back of the property. How does that work out? ... Is there some way to accommodate a higher fence? ... How about a computer generated image of what it looks like from the road? ... Let's not paint it blue."

Said Mayor Tom O'Connor, "This is a 20, 30, 40-year decision. Whatever we do will be here for a long time. We don't want to be doing something that is shortsighted ... From the perspective of the road, I'm now torn. We certainly don't want a big blue blob there. This is not a simple decision. This is troubling all of us. We can have a much more fuller decision in two weeks. Could you address this in a more formal way on May 12th?"

Said City Manger Don Uram, "The building would be higher toward the back of the property. We're certainly aware of the cost considerations. I think there is a midway point. Our goal would be to minimize the site to the neighbors yet maintain usable space for Public Works in the future. I think there is a balance."

Said Councilmember Joe Pavelko, "I can see that moving it [from the bid position] could cost $100,000. I'd rather see the $100,000 put into the building. If we're going to go over budget, I'd want it to be for something usable."

BIDS COME IN WITHIN TIGHT BUDGET

ALL AWARDED BUT ELECTRICAL BID ON CITY HALL Bids on construction of the new City Hall and Public Works facility were received in the first days of April. On April 14th, city councilmembers unanimously followed the recommendations of Construction Manager Dale Sonnichsen of Stahl Construction.

In general, overall cost of City Hall came in high to what was expected and Public Works came in lower. According to City Manager Don Uram, "Overall it was a balance and we still meet budget."

Council accepted the entire low bid package on the Public Works facility, which totaled $1,257,666.20.

It includes earthwork and site utilities ($111,754 from Olson Construction out of Cologne), asphalt paving ($64,975 from Bituminous Roadways out of Mendota Heights), landscaping and retaining walls ($36,742 from Hartman Companies out of Victoria), building construction ($724,827 from Rice Building Systems out of Sauk Rapids), fire protection ($24,875 from Viking Automatic Sprinkler out of St. Paul), plumbing and HVAC ($199,992 from TEK Mechanical Services out of Hutchinson), and electrical ($94,500 from Master Electric out of Savage).

Council accepted four out of the five items in the low bid package for City Hall, totaling $1,603,007.26. It does not include the electrical component. Mr. Uram said the single bid on the electrical component, even though the overall project remains within budget, was significantly higher that the engineer's estimate.

Click here to continue Stepping Toward Construction.