By Matt Smith/msmith@trcle.com
May 08, 2008 07:05 pm
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The Cleburne City Council, in a special called meeting Tuesday, approved paying for architectural plans for the combination Cleburne Civic Center and performing arts center project. Construction of the project, should the council later approve it, has an estimated cost of $10,537,000. Work on the project is expected to begin Sept. 1.
Councilmen Kyle Boles, Bob Force and John Warren approved the measure. Mayor Ted Reynolds and Councilman Sonny Russell opposed it.
The project began as two separate projects, both through the Cleburne 4B Economic Development Corp. Initial plans called for renovation and expansion of the Cleburne Civic Center on West Henderson Street and building a performing arts center to be located elsewhere.
Council members approved the purchase of the old Royce’s Pharmacy building in downtown for $150,000 in August for use as a performing arts center. City leaders subsequently learned the building could not accommodate the needs of a theater after the building was purchased.
Council members, in a March workshop session, voiced support for 4B’s recommendation to combine both projects in one building. Reynolds and Russell expressed concern the following month, however, when Assistant City Manager Adam Miles told council members the project’s estimated $12 million cost. Force and Warren, at the time, said they would need to study the estimates and numbers before commenting on the project. Boles was absent from the meeting. Miles did say, during the April meeting, that 4B members were working with architects and builders in an attempt to lower the project’s estimated cost.
The lone agenda item on Tuesday’s special called meeting authorized City Manager Chester Nolen to execute an agreement with GSBS Architects for renovation services of the civic center and addition of the performing arts center. Of the estimated project cost, $7.6 million is to come from 4B funds with the remaining $2,937,000 coming from city funds. The vote authorized 4B to increase GSBS’s contract fee from $397,000 to $736,000, which, should the council later approve construction, will likely lead to the project’s estimated $10.5 million cost. The city’s portion of GSBS’s contract fee will be $133,280.
The increase in the size of the project, adding about 10,000 square feet, led to the cost increase in architect service fees from GSBS, Nolen said.
“Ostensibly, at least right now, they’ll be represented from Fund 21,” Nolen said when asked where the city’s funding portion would come from. Fund 21 holds revenues from gas leases on city owned land. “We’re currently over budget in revenue. We have exceeded our budgeted amounts. We projected $5 million [for the year], and it looks like we’re going to be at about $8 million, so we’ll have sufficient funds to pay for that.”
Sales-tax revenues could be another option, Nolen said. Cleburne budgeted a 2.5 percent increase in revenues over last year. However, revenues are presently running about 35 percent over last year, he said.
Council opinions
“It’s a quality of life project the city definitely needs,” Force said. “I supported it as a great asset to the city. We have the money now. If we put it off, we’re going to have to spend that much more money.”
Boles agreed.
“I think it’s time to provide good, nice and essential facilities for our residents, and to attract people to Cleburne,” Boles said. “Yes, it’s going to be an expensive project, but I think we’ve been extremely good stewards. And we’re going to have a very, very nice facility that’s going to last 25-30 years.
“With the economy the way it is, and oil prices going up, and all that tied to steel and concrete and materials, I think it’s time to move on this while we have the money.”
Warren said the meeting turned into a political fiasco.
“This whole thing turned political, and I don’t think that’s a good thing at all,” Warren said. “But, I supported it because I think it’s going to be a worthwhile project and something the citizens can all be proud of, and that’s all I want to say on it.”
Reynolds and Russell both said they support the project, just not the cost.
“I voted not against the project,” Russell said. “Just wanted them to trim down that astronomical cost. This is a very worthy and needed project, but the largest concern I have is the amount the city will be contributing.”
Russell said he believes the final cost will exceed $10.5 million.
“One thing to consider here is that [the city’s cost share] is not the total cost the city will be require to spend on the civic center project,” Russell said. “These projects always far exceed the original estimated cost. The golf course was supposed to cost $2.8 million. It’s already doubled that, and who knows what the final cost will be?”
Costs of the project should have been scaled back leaving the extra money for street, drainage and sidewalk projects as well as a fire station on Cleburne’s north side, Russell said.
“I’ve always, since day one, supported the civic center and performing arts center projects,” Reynolds said. “It’s not a question of support. It’s a question of how much. And $10.5 million is too much. And remember, these are just estimates. The council hasn’t voted yet to approve any contracts.”
Reynolds also said excess Fund 21 revenues should go toward “higher-priority projects” such as street repairs on the city’s east side.
Why the special called meeting?
In an April 29 special called 4B meeting, members approved, by a 6-0 vote, the resolution council members voted on Tuesday. The council called a special meeting even though Cleburne’s regular council meeting is scheduled for May 13, seven days after the special called meeting. Officials differed on whether the matter could not have waited until the regular council meeting.
“4B was interested in moving forward and getting the project going, is my understanding,” Nolen said. “The project’s construction manager at risk was at a standstill and couldn’t move until he received the go ahead.”
Force cited rising costs.
“Concrete and steel prices are rising daily,” Force said. “It’s best to do it quickly as possible to get firm prices.”
Boles agreed.
“The voters were promised these projects and it’s time to move forward,” Boles said. “We could wait another six months and the price could probably be another one or two million.”
Reynolds agreed that the cost of materials is rising but said he does not believe a seven-day wait would make too much difference.
“That doesn’t hold water. What was the emergency?” Russell said. “I’ve gotten no satisfactory answer as to why this couldn’t wait until the regular meeting. No one’s going to bite that the price would jump that much in seven days. That insults my intelligence. They didn’t want a big room full of people and the press to be there at a regular meeting.”
In contrast to other council meetings, the Times-Review did not recieve e-mail notification of the meeting. Deputy City Secretary Ivy Peterson was out when the meeting agenda was posted.
City Secretary Shelly Doty said she forgot to send e-mail notifications out.
Russell said he was “dumbfounded” not to see media representatives at the meeting.
“I’m totally PO’d about that and think they wanted that to go through as quietly as possible and tried to do it incognito,” Russell said. “The newspaper should have been there.”
Reynolds said he doesn’t know why e-mail notifications didn’t go out and called the incident an unfortunate mistake.
The remaining council members said they were unaware agendas were not e-mailed to the media but noted the agenda was posted on the city’s Web site.
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