Ark Valley News - New regs cause 53rd St. engineering costs to increase

New regs cause 53rd St. engineering costs to increase
By David Dinell
Last Updated: June 25, 2015

Expenditures — both planned and unplanned — dominated a lengthy meeting of the June 23 Park City Council.

Among the unplanned costs are more expenses for engineering work on the 53rd North improvement project. The contract for it was signed in 2003, but since then the Kansas Department of Transportation has changed numerous regulations, changes that mean more engineering work, said City Administrator Jack Whitson.

The firm the city has contracted with, Parsons Brinckerhoff of Wichita, said it would require $70,950 more in engineering work. The council, while clearly not happy about having to spend more, approved the increase, capping the engineering side of the project at $319,014.

Rule changes cover everything from bike path sizes to right-of-ways to utility relocations, said project manager Ronald Nuessen, who appear before the council to answer questions.

"This is not something that we like to do," Nuessen said of the increase.

The firm likes to foresee possible changes. However, there's little choice but to invest more into the project to be in compliance with state law, he said.

In another unforeseen expense, the council approved a $5,150 change order in the contract with the city auditors, Adams, Brown Beran & Ball. The audit normally costs the city about $10,000, but given the amount of time the auditors spent on the project this year, the extra cost is warranted, Whitson said.

"You can't ask these guys to do all this for free," he said.

Again, council members were not pleased, but agreed on the expense. Mayor Ray Mann said the city must do better.

"We took a step backwards this year," he said. "This should be an improvement process."

The mayor and council want audit "spot checks" throughout the year, so the work doesn't pile up at the end of the accounting period, resulting in a more costly audit.

Another expense, $490,000 for improvements to the Chisholm Creek Utility Authority, was not unforeseen and its funding will come from the utility fund. The money will be used to tackle problems with corrosion and odors, a source of citizens' complaints. Since the cash is there, it makes no sense to make it a bond issue, Mann said. Whitson agreed.

"No one has the stomach to raise sewer rates," he said.

In other action, the council:

•Approved appropriations of $306,926 for the period of June 10 to June 19. Such funds covers the normal day-to-day spending of the city. There also are $248,132 in open purchase orders.

•Listened to a presentation by Ben Wilson and Danielle Hollingshead Adams, Brown Beran & Ball on the 2014 audit report.

•Heard a report from public works director Rick Norman. The park department continues with a heavy load of seasonal moving and trimming, has treated Chisholm Pointe Lake for algae and repaired the irrigation lines in the landscape bed on 61st Street North. The street department has completed mosquito fogging and has been working in sign installations. The water/sewer department has been fixing potholes on 53rd Street North and its average work orders per day as 19 from June 1 to 15.

•Approved the purchase of a backhoe for the Water and Sewer Department at a cost of $59,151. The Utility Reserves will provide 80 percent of the funding and the Special Street and Highway Fund will be the source of 20 percent of funding.

The department's existing backhoe is a 1985 Case 580E model, and, after 30 years of heavy use, is showing its wear and tear, according to utility supervisor Jerry Martin. The department recently obtained a quote of more than $5,000 to replace its fuel tanks and some other part.

"The worth of the backhoes does not justify those costs," Martin reported to the council. In addition, the backhoe has other repair issues that need to be addresses, he said.

Martin assembled three models for the council to consider, all 2015 models. The costs ranged from $59,151 to $62,679. All three models — a Caterpillar, a John Deere and a Case — come with a four-in-one bucket feature. Martin recommended the Caterpillar model from Foley Equipment in Wichita and the council concurred. The city will be able to get a $5,000 trade-in allowance for the existing Case model.

•Commissioned the sale of two of the city's Ford police vehicles in an auction. Proceeds from the sale will be deposited into the police department's capital equipment fund to help equip two new Ford Explorers.

•Authorized depositing $18,000 from a reimbursement from the Department of Justice into the police department capital equipment fund.

•Heard a report from Ward 2 council member George Glover on the June 20 fishing derby. Earlier, Norman reported that the event attracted 160 participants.

•Asked Whitson to send a letter to the county on the Sedgwick County Board of County Commissioners' proposal to eliminate the "zoning area of influence," stating that it is against the move. The area of influence allows to the city to have a say in zoning matters that are outside of its legal boundaries but that may have an effect of it nonetheless. An example would be putting a commercial operation outside of the city, but close to a residential area. Whitson said the city should be able to have a say in such matters as they impact property values and quality of life issues.