Chelsea City Council accepts bids for sports complex

Chelsea City Council accepted a bid for $1.13 million for Phase I of the Chelsea Sports Complex at its Sept. 15 meeting.

The bid covers construction of the three baseball fields, batting cages, a 222-spot parking lot and a walking trail around the park. The council also accepted an alternate bid in the amount of $11,500 for a decorative fence at the front of the park. 

During pre-council, council members discussed the possibility of delaying some aspects of the project in order to put off the expense. City engineer Frank Spencer suggested considering only paving half of the parking lot at this time and waiting a few months to pave the remaining portion. That change to the contract would have decreased the bid cost by $75,000.

"If we did it that way, we would just get an asphalt contractor to do it," Spencer said, noting it would potentially save some money or come out as the same cost.

Spencer also said not paving the walking trail was an option to reduce the bid cost by around $34,000. After hearing Spencer's suggestions as well as a few suggestions from the contractor with the lowest and best bid, Mayor Earl Niven recommended making the cuts and completing those projects four to six months after Phase I was completed.

"In a very short period of time, it will all be like this," Niven said. "But if we cut back ... that's one-third of the concession stand we can do."

Niven said he suggested the cutbacks so that the city would not have to borrow any money to complete the project. The city is accruing around $64,000 a month from a one-cent sales tax increase that was instated in August 2014, Niven said, which could help pay for the decreased bid cost and the delayed projects down the road.

Councilman Tony Picklesimer, however, suggested the council accept the bid as is and wrap up all of the projects at this time.

"I'm not a fan of kicking these cans down the road," Picklesimer said.

Picklesimer's comment prompted discussion regarding borrowing enough money to complete Phase I and begin work on Phase II of the sports complex. Niven mentioned that amount of money would total to a few million dollars, and the council decided not to continue discussion. Phase II planning will likely take place in the second half of 2016.

Niven said the council did not need to decide how much money would be borrowed at this council meeting, and the council only needed to make a decision on accepting the whole bid or parts. The council decided to accept the bid with the contract as is rather than delay any projects.

Another resolution, regarding a bid for lighting and electrical in Phase I of the sports complex, was also accepted. The bid was awarded to Titan Electric for the amount of $348,158.98. There was little discussion about changing this bid contract.

Spencer said the ball park should be open by May 1, 2016.

Chelsea Fire and Rescue Chief Wayne Shirley informed the council that the fire department received a favorable grade on its Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating. The department went from a 5 down to a 3/3x, which Shirley said should help reduce insurance premiums for individuals and businesses. The new rating should be effective as of Dec. 1, when Shirley recommended citizens talk with their insurance providers. 

"Now they're giving us credit to the quality of the fire services," Shirley said.

Shirley also reminded the council about National Night Out on Oct. 6, where there will be an opportunity to sign up for free smoke detectors from the Red Cross and free bicycle helmets will be available.