Tim Meyer of Meyer Group said he understands the concerns raised by the Tofte township supervisors when they received a much larger bill for architectural services then they had expected.
The bill was presented to the board at its March 8 meeting by Supervisor D.C. Olson. It was $7,000 more than the $5,000 agreed upon by the two parties.
“Neither Rob Barse [of ORB] nor I could be at that meeting,” said Meyer. “If either of us could have attended the meeting, I think we could have explained to the board why the charges were higher than expected.”
Meyer Group was hired by the township of Tofte after being recommended by ORB Management. ORB has acted at the general contractor for the county on projects being funded by the county’s 1 percent sales tax collected to help pay for recreation projects and infrastructure. Meyer Group has been hired to develop plans for improvements at Birch Grove Community Center and a new community center in Grand Marais.
Part of the problem, said Meyer, was the first design for the warming house was completed and on budget but then some changes were suggested.
“We went ahead with those changes and we were ready to absorb those costs, but then the changes got bigger and bigger until we couldn’t absorb them,” said Meyer.
Also, said Meyer, the Tofte Design and Review Board mandated the re-design, but, as he added, those changes weren’t passed on to the Tofte Town Board.
One other complication, he said, involved the confusion caused when two invoices were sent to the town board and opened at the March 8 meeting. “One was a draft proposal. That wasn’t supposed to be there. I would have been upset, too, if I was on the board and got those bills without an explanation.”
Bids for the new warming house and skating rink will be advertised in the near future, and, said Meyer, “I think once the work begins people will be very happy with what they see. Our goal the whole time has been to move ahead with the best options and make sure the people get what they want and what they need. We have never tried to take advantage of the community.
“I know right now all they have are plans, and a lot of time and money have been spent on plans, and people are frustrated by that, but once the work begins they will be excited with the end result. I think that will be true of the community center too. But until the work begins it’s a little frustrating for everyone.”
Leave a Reply