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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-03-16 MinutesMayor Dan Coody City Attomey Kit Williams City Clerk Sondra Smith aye evi le AR KA N SA 5 City of Fayetteville Arkansas City Council Street Committee Meeting Minutes March 16, 2006 City Council Street Committee Minutes March 16, 2006 Page 1 of 5 Member Aldermen Ward 1 Position 1 - Ward 2 Position 2 Ward 3 Position 2 Ward 4 Position 2 - Robert Reynolds — Don Man- - a r— Robert Ferrell Lioneld Jordan A meeting of the Fayetteville City Council Street Committee was held on March 16, 2006 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 111 of the City Administration Building located at 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. MEMBERS PRESENT: Alderman Lioneld Jordan, Chair; Alderman Robert Reynolds; Alderman Robert Ferrell; Members Absent: Alderman Don Marr Staff Present: Ron Petrie, Gary Dumas, Perry Franklin, Tim Conklin, Chris Brown 1. Call to order Chairman Lioneld Jordan called the meeting to order. 2. Approval of Minutes from March 2, 2006 Street Committee Meeting Alderman Ferrell moved that the minutes to the March 2, 2006 Street Committee meeting be approved as submitted. Alderman Reynolds seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 3. 2006 Bids for Bulk Construction Materials and Services to be Used for Multiple Capital Projects and Transportation Division Programs (this item was not on the agenda but was added by Chairman Jordan) Perry Franklin explained to the Committee that the cost of the bulk construction materials to be used by the Transportation Division in 2006 is about 20% more than last year. However, when staff worked on the budget last summer they anticipated that the increases in fuel costs would cause prices to rise, so they budgeted pretty accurately. Staff does not anticipate any adjustments in the future. Mr. Franklin also explained that the bulk materials includes striping, aggregate, asphalt, concrete curb & guttering, etc. Staff is recommending the low bidder on the project. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes March 16, 2006 Page 2 of 5 The 2nd lowest bidder has agreed to act as the back-up if needed. Mr. Franklin explained that sometimes one company is not able to produce all the materials needed because of the demand in the area, so staff has to rely on a second supplier. There was some discussion about details of the bids. Alderman Ferrell moved that the bids be forwarded to the Council with a favorable recommendation. Alderman Reynolds seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 4. Proposed amendment to the Master Street Plan to reduce the required dedication of right-of-way of 55 feet along Highway 265 near the intersection of Old Wire Road for the construction of the new Fire Station No. 5. Ron Petrie said Fire Station No. 5 will be located at the corner of Old Wire Road and Highway 265. A drawing submitted to the Committee indicated what is being requested. According to the Master Street Plan, the project would require 55 feet of right-of-way. Staff knew the site would be very tight, due to the width of the lot and the sewer easement on the west side and gas easement on the east side. At this time the AHTD is fairly sure that all the street widening will be on the east side of Hwy 265. In order to meet all the set -backs for the fire station building, the Master Street Plan will have to be amended. A 55 feet dedication is possible for the a majority of the property, but adjacent to the fire station there is a small area where it will be reduced to 44.3 feet on one side and 48.7 on the other. In response to a question from Alderman Reynolds, Chief Tony Johnson said the projected cost of this station is $1.5 million. Alderman Ferrell asked how far the back of the proposed building will be from the creek. Ron Petrie said he could provide only very rough numbers. It is 20 feet from the building to the rear of the lot and the creek sits approximately another 15 to 20 feet beyond the property line. The property is out of the floodway. However it is in the flood plain and will have to be raised some, with around five to six feet of fill in the rear. Alderman Ferrell moved that the item be forwarded to the Council with favorable recommendation. Alderman Reynolds seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 5. Presentation of the financing options for the proposed City Transportation Improvement Program and discussion of the proposed phasing of the projects Dennis Hunt, Stephens, Inc. stated that he had reviewed the transportation program with the Committee last May and had then given some analysis of ways to generate the approximately $145 million for project improvements. Since that time, additional capital needs have been identified by the City. He said that he has met with City staff to review the possibilities in terms 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes March 16, 2006 Page 3 of 5 of addressing those capital needs. He distributed to the Committee members a table that shows how the City might generate $162 million for transportation improvements. He cautioned that this is an illustration only and is not to suggest that the City would have to issue a particular amount of bonds in a particular year. However, the schedule gives the capacity that is available to the City. The City would have to determine how quickly the money could be spent on the needed projects. As discussed previously, the City would have 36 months from the date of closing on a bond issue to expend all the money from the bond proceeds. Mr. Hunt reviewed the material submitted to the Committee. A 4% annual growth rate in the sales tax in the City and an interest rate of 4.7% are assumed (it is approximately 4.2% currently). Based on the illustration presented, the bonds would be paid off in June of 2021. Even though we are talking about increasing the bond issue from $145 to $162 million, the growth in the City and the sales tax collected will enable the City to pay off the debt on the date discussed earlier. In response to a question from Alderman Reynolds, Steve Davis said he feels the financing aspect of this is very doable. However, he suggested that it is very important to have enough project management staff to keep the project on track. The timing of the issuing of the bonds is important. The City would have to establish a threshold for when additional bonds will be issued based on how much the original bonds have been spent down to avoid the problems we have had with the WSIP where the first bonds were paid off before construction could begin. Dennis Hunt said with a program of this magnitude, it will take a considerable amount of time to do the engineering, right of way acquisition, etc. During that process, monthly draws will not be significant. Once several of the projects begin the draws will increase significantly. It is a key concern to make sure the proceeds are expended according to the Code, so phasing of the projects to be done is important. Gary Dumas agreed that capacity to spend the money is an issue. It can sometimes be difficult to spend large sums of money. You have to have the capacity to get the job on the street and the jobs have to be monitored once they are out there. It will be a major challenge. There may need to be additional staff in Engineering to help with these issues. Alderman Jordan said that once the phasing has been discussed and agreed upon, he thinks the Committee can move forward with this. There will probably be at least one public meeting and then it can be moved on to the Council. If the phasing can be agreed upon in the next couple of Committee meetings, he feels it can be before the Council in late April. In response to a question from Alderman Ferrell, Dennis Hunt said that in order to close on a bond issue by October 1, the election would probably have to be held in July or August. There's the 30 days notice for purposes of the election and then a 30 day period to allow the election to be contested. The bond issue could be running concurrently with the last 30 days. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes March 16, 2006 Page 4 of 5 Alderman Jordan said his goal is to get the Committee's work done sometime in April. It will then be in the hands of the City Council as a whole. Alderman Jordan brought the Committee's discussion to the proposed phasing of the projects on the transportation improvement program. There was a discussion about the section of road between Happy Hollow and South College. The possibility of putting part of this project in Phase 1 and the remainder in Phase 2 was discussed. Gary Dumas stated that, due to the engineering right-of-way acquisition, we are probably 18 to 24 months away from construction on any of the major projects. In response to a question from Alderman Reynolds regarding phasing of the Happy Hollow to S. College project, Ron Petrie explained that the construction of the project could be more than 50% completed in Phase 1 but the actual completion of the project could "bleed" into Phase 2. Although AHTD owns the land along this road, there is probably only about 80 feet of right-of- way. If we put a five -lane road, curb and gutter, new storm pipes and sidewalks, we will need more than 80 feet. In response to a second question from Alderman Reynolds, Gary Dumas said that there is $5.5 million budgeted for this project currently in Phase 3. This amount has been adjusted for inflation through three phases, which would run over several years. He expects that $5 million in Phase 1 would probably complete the project. There was discussion of priorities and where restructuring College Avenue fits into the mix of needs. Alderman Jordan asked if it could be agreed to put the entire Happy Hollow/S. College project into Phase 1 at this time and leaving the discussion of College Avenue alone until Alderman Marr can be present, since much of that street goes through his Ward. Alderman Ferrell mentioned that he would like to discuss Zion Rd. in the future but needs to get some facts together before that discussion. Alderman Jordan opened the floor to public comment There was none. Gary Dumas said that there is some work still to be done on the Phase 2 project list. The current Phase 2 projects are estimated at $47 million. The amount available is $35 million. So some cuts will have to be made to this list. He further explained that if anything is taken from Phase 2 and added to Phase 3, something from Phase 3 would have to be moved to balance those numbers. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes March 16, 2006 Page 5 of 5 It was agreed to continue discussion of the project list and phasing at the next Committee meeting when all Committee members could be present. 6. Presentation of the Concept Plan for Morningside Drive Signalization Project Ron Petrie said staff has continued to work on this project. They are now at a point that they want to get approval from the Committee on the concept so they can move on to design. Chris Brown of the Engineering division explained the concept for this project to the Committee. He explained that the concept shows the current project as well as future widening of 15th Street. The plan includes approximately 800 feet of improvements on Morningside. This includes total reconstruction of that area, with new base and paving. It will be 3 -lane with no curb and gutter or sidewalk. About 900 feet of improvements are planned for 15th St. The existing pavement is wide enough for a three lane section with decent shoulders. The plan is for a 2 -inch overlay on this section of 15th St. The location of the poles is planned to accommodate the future widening of 15th St. If the Committee approves this concept, the next step is to complete the preliminary design and the signalization design work and get these designs to the AHTD for their approval. There was discussion about the concept and the need for signalization at this intersection. Alderman Ferrell moved that this project move forward. Alderman Reynolds seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 7. Scheduling of the next Street Committee Meeting It was agreed the next Street Committee meeting will be scheduled sometime in early April. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org