The contingency fund for construction of the Cook County Community YMCA is potentially getting low. Project Director Wade Cole of ORB Management spoke to the county board on July 9, 2013 about the possibility of finding other funds to cover some costs that were not originally part of the project.
When the project was first started, a representative from the state had told ORB that a plan review and building permit would not be required. His decision was overruled, however, resulting in a charge of $28,887 for the state to conduct a plan review. This was followed by the state requiring a building permit at a cost of $38,876.65, which would cover the cost of a weekly inspection by the state—a total cost of $67,763.65.
The other unexpected cost—$69,874— related to design changes that had been made after Phase IV bids came in $1.5 million over budget. The county has paid JLG, the project’s architectural firm, and some of its subcontractors $48,674 for additional services performed in redesigning the facility to take out approximately 3,400 square feet in order to save about $400,000 in construction costs. Other cost reductions were accomplished by re-bidding and changing some materials to be used in the building. The subcontractors involved in the redesign were Northland Constructors, Dunham Engineering, and Meyer Group.
In addition to paying for the redesign services, the county paid $21,600 to settle a claim made by Meyer Group, which under its contract would be paid a percentage of the project cost. Meyer Group claimed that they were due the percentage of the amount that was originally bid in Phase IV. JLG also paid $26,400 to settle with Meyer Group, according to County Commissioner Garry Gamble.
“They were in no way owed that money per the contract, [which] based [their percentage] on final cost, but they filed with arbitration anyway,” a county official told the Cook County News-Herald. “The cost of settling was less than the estimated cost of fighting their claim – even though we were highly likely to win.”
Taking the state costs and the redesign costs out of the project’s contingency fund would bring the fund down to $44,377.69. “With six months of construction left, that concerns me,” Cole told the board.
“Common sense tells you that $44,000 isn’t going to make it to the end of the project,” Commissioner Sue Hakes said.
Commissioner Heidi Doo-Kirk suggested taking the pool slide out of the project since that was a big-ticket item that could easily be removed.
They could take the gymnasium bleachers out instead, Commissioner Sue Hakes said, but when they had suggested that earlier in the project, there was a lot of outcry. “If we delete things from the project, there will be consequences to pay,” she said.
Commissioner Gamble said he wanted to make sure they remain disciplined and stick within their budget.
“I can assure you that discipline is in place,” Cole said. He said they are still looking for ways to save money.
Duluth Area YMCA Executive Director Chris Francis said taking the slide out would impact the program enormously.
The cost of the slide and bleachers could not be fully recovered if the contractors had already purchased these items, Cole said.
The up to $20 million (plus the cost of financing) that the county is allowed to collect under the 1 percent recreation and infrastructure sales tax has just under $500,000 not yet committed to specific projects. Taking money from this fund “should be harder than pulling hens’ teeth,” Commissioner Gamble said.
The board unanimously voted to transfer $67,763.65 – the amount of the state costs—from the uncommitted 1 percent fund to the YMCA project fund.
YMCA program costs
Duluth Area YMCA Executive Director Chris Francis said they want to see the Y open by the end of the year because January is their biggest month for membership sales. He said he expects tourist dollars and use by YMCA members from outside the county to generate a lot of the Cook County YMCA’s revenue. “Marketing us outside the county will benefit us here,” he said.
Cook County Branch Executive Director Emily Marshall said they are considering the following membership rates: $15/month for youth, $42/ month for single adults, $51/month for one-parent families, and $61/month for two-parent families. Day passes are expected to cost $5 for youth, $10 for adults, and $20 for families. Punch cards will be available for fitness and water fitness classes.
An annual family pass at the Grand Marais Municipal Pool is $325, the equivalent of just over $27/month.
“A Y membership would include access to the entire facility—pool, weight room, cardio room, fitness studio, gymnasium, hot tub, sauna, teen center, etc.,” Marshall said. “Not only does it include access to the space, but it also includes access to a lot of programs. For example, a member would not need to pay to come and take a class like group cycling, Pilates, or Cardio Boot Camp. Members may use the child watch area for free (supervised play area for children while you work out). Y members also get priority registration and discounted rates for fee-based programs like personal training, swim lessons, birthday parties, parents’ night out, youth dance/ gymnastics, etc.
“The Y welcomes all who wish to participate and believes that no one should be denied access based on their ability to pay. Our sliding fee scale is based on a number of different factors and each family or individual’s unique needs and circumstances are carefully reviewed. …The application is available on our website at cookcountyymca.org if people are interested.
“Also, if families have Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, Health Partners, Medica, Preferred One, or U-Care, they may be eligible for a $20-40 reimbursement each month just for working out! If it’s a family with two adults and they are both coming on a regular basis, that makes their membership only $21 each month!”
Tennis court access
The parking lot around the new YMCA facility has cut closer to the tennis courts than expected, leaving no room for people to walk between the north and the south courts without stepping off a curb and down onto the parking lot. This would be a problem for people with mobility challenges.
Wade Cole told the county board that ORB and JLG have agreed to come up with a design—at no charge—for a walkway between the two courts along with a retaining wall to handle storm water. The cost of installing the walkway and wall is estimated at $15,000- 20,000.
“The tennis courts are owned by the county and we need to take care of them,” Sue Hakes said. “I definitely think that we need to fix the problem.” She said she does not want any group to end up with less than they started with as the YMCA facility is built.
Community Center Director Diane Booth said she knew of a grant for erosion control that might cover about $10,000 of the cost.
Auditor-Treasurer Braidy Powers said the county recreation fund does not have enough money available right now to cover this cost.
The board passed a motion authorizing Wade Cole to pursue a design plan addressing drainage and accessibility issues and directing Diane Booth to apply for a grant to help cover the cost. The design is expected to be presented at the July 16 county board meeting, at which time the board will consider using reserve funds to cover the cost until the recreation fund has enough money to reimburse the reserve fund.
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