Another step has been made towards the paving of the public
access on North Drive. With the grant
being received for the construction costs the city moved forward with the
development of plans and specifications for the construction. These were reviewed by the city council at
the July meeting. They were approved and
the council also asked that bids be received on construction. Bids will be received on August 16th
and will be considered that evening. If
the bids are acceptable an award will be made.
As part of the grant process Crow Wing County submitted the
grant for the city. Funds from the grant
come from the DNR State Road Account.
This makes the process and funding vehicle a State Aid project. Certain criteria are required as Crow Wing County
is also the fiscal agent. As such they
have requested an acknowledgement from the city that we understand our role in
this process. The city is responsible
for all phases of the project including but not limited to engineering, design,
permitting, award and construction. The
city understands that Crow Wing County is solely a pass-through, fiscal agent
for the project.
Once the project is bid the city will request funds from the
county and they will request funds from the state. The county will provide 95% of the funds to
the city to accommodate construction costs.
When the project is completed the city will receive the remaining 5% of
the construction costs.
There was some concern that the city could be obligated to
additional costs, particularly if the bid comes in higher than the construction
amount. The city could reject all bids
and rebid in the spring if need be.
Change orders could also be a concern.
The council is aware of these possibilities and would like to see the
project completed this fall if possible.
Hopefully we’ll see the project completed in that time line.
