Remodeling at city hall to continue (12/23/05)

Everything old will look old again.

Antique-style mahogany doors will soon grace the front entrance of the 110-year-old Portland City Hall.

Inside the building, cherry-stained doors will replace the old, worn doors in areas used by the Portland police department.

Members of the Portland Board of Works voted Thursday afternoon to pay Minnich Architecture and Construction of Portland $52,579 to do the second phase of renovations to the building.

There is money in this year’s city budget for the work, said Bruce Hosier, mayor of Portland.

The first phase of renovations, which included remodeling the offices of the mayor, his administrative assistant and the city clerk-treasurer, also was done by Minnich. That work was completed in March of 2004.

Work on the second phase of renovations to the 321 N. Meridian St. building has already begun. The old glass foyer and door at the front of the building has been removed and Minnich employees have begun installing a tile floor, said Jason Minnich, president and owner of the architecture and construction company.

Linda Kennedy, city clerk-treasurer, said this morning, the work that has already been done to the front end of the building will cost less than $10,000. Funds left over from the first phase of renovations and the 2004 city budget will cover the costs of this work. Spending this amount of money does not have to go before a board for approval, she said.

Other planned changes to the building include installing an aluminum door with a lock at the rear entrance of the building, primarily used for access to the police department.

The door will have a camera and dispatchers will have to buzz people in after a certain time at night, Hosier said. City officials also hope to install new florescent lights in the building, illuminated exit signs and add a fresh coat of paint to parts of the interior.

Hosier said the new front doors are expected to arrive sometime in February. The remodeling work should be completed by the end of March, he said.

In other business Thursday, the board voted to pay The Schneider Corporation engineering fees for work on Hudson Family Park.

The engineering firm will be paid $82,300 for its work on the trail system throughout the park, $63,920 for phase two of the park project and $39,592 to design a new street and park department headquarters planned to be located within the park.

The trail system is planned to run from Freedom Park to the trail head inside Hudson Family Park, then throughout the new park. Part of the trail system design work includes wetland delineation, which determines where and if wetlands exist, and mapping the area where the trail system might be.

Phase two of the project includes designing the main drive through the park, the pond, and the grading for the entire park.

The new headquarters for the street and park department is expected to be built at the southeast side of the park. The old department building, currently located at 301 S. Wayne St., is old, expensive to heat and has a leaky roof, Hosier said. This building will most likely be razed, he said.

The engineering fees for the trail system and the phase two engineering work will be paid through park department funds and some of the city’s economic development income tax funds, Kennedy said. City officials plan to gradually repay the borrowed EDIT funds over several years.

The engineering fees for the new building will be paid through street department funds, she said.

The cost to develop the more than 34-acre Hudson Family Park has been estimated at $3.4 million.

Also Monday, the board:

•Selected a $13,250 quote from MacDonald Machinery of Fort Wayne for a new water pump for the city’s water department.

Industrial Equipment of North Dakota also submitted a quote of $12,914. Board members chose the MacDonald quote because the company is located in Indiana, making it easier and faster to get the new pump.

Doug Jackson, water department superintendent, said the two pumps he currently has are 16 and 12 years old. They aren’t very reliable and can’t pump the water very fast. The pumps are used when water department employees are fixing leaks, he said.

•Accepted a bid by G&G Oil Co. of Indiana Inc., Muncie, to provide engine oil and hydraulic fluid in 2006 for city-owned vehicles.

The company’s bid includes a price of $5.71 per gallon for 10W30 oil, $5.36 per gallon for 30W oil and $5.61 for hydraulic tractor fluid. The company’s bid sheet states that deliveries are free on Mondays.

G&G submitted the only bid to provide oil and fluid.

The board accepted bids at the Dec. 1 meeting for providers of gasoline and diesel fuel, and service and materials for improvements to city streets and alleys. The G&G bid was not reviewed at that time because it came in late.

•Voted to adjust a Portland woman’s sewer bill.

Mrs. David Parks requested the adjustment because she had a water leak. She had the problem fixed.

The adjustment will be made following the city’s policy, which is to reduce the sewer bill down to a three-month average for sewage bills prior to the leak.[[In-content Ad]]