SUMMARY MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING

OF THE CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL

MONDAY, JUNE 20, 2005 AT 7:00 P.M.

 

 

Mayor Kevin Foy called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

 

Council members present were Sally Greene, Ed Harrison, Cam Hill, Mark Kleinschmidt, Bill Strom, Dorothy Verkerk, Jim Ward and Edith Wiggins.

 

Staff members present were Town Manager Cal Horton, Deputy Town Manager Florentine Miller, Assistant Town Manager Bruce Heflin, Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos, Finance Director Kay Johnson, Public Works Director Bill Letteri, and Town Clerk Sabrina Oliver.

 

Mayor Foy said this was a special meeting to provide the public with an additional opportunity to discuss the proposed budget, and to consider awarding bids for construction of the Town Operations Center.  He said once this meeting was concluded, the Council would move on to a Public Hearing where they had several items to consider in regard to development proposals.

 

Item 1 – Changes Since the Preparation of the Recommended Budget

 

Mayor Foy said the information from the meeting on June 15 had been reissued for the Council’s benefit.

 

Robin Cutson urged the Council to carefully consider factors regarding the budget before they took action.  She said of particular interest were:

 

·              the issue of Transit workers having to work split shifts and not logging in eight hours of pay

·              buses not being properly cleaned or maintained

·              the Town considering increasing the employees’ costs for health insurance to save money

·              employees with longevity were not near the top of the pay grade

·              salary compression was hurting moral

·              citizens on fixed or moderate incomes were being priced out of Chapel Hill by increased taxes and fees

·              the Town was proposing to save money by increasing fees for commercial garbage collection

·              the Town was delaying sidewalk repairs

·              the Town was planning on giving the Public Arts Commission $25,000 more on top of the $125,000 they already received each year, on top of the 1 percent for art fund which also funded public art.

 

Ms. Cutson said the Town had been criticized for excessive spending on consultants, yet the Town was budgeting funds to hire even more consultants to assist the Planning Board, to measure Green House gas emissions, and others.  She said the Town already contributed to many non-profits and public agencies and showed no signs of reigning in that spending.  Ms. Cutson said in funding agencies such as the Downtown Economic Development Corporation the Town was building an even bigger government bureaucracy that citizens had no control over since they don’t get to vote for those public officials.

 

Ms. Cutson said a recent newspaper article had noted that local officials from public, private, and non-profit groups would soon travel to other areas to gain information to “help plan Chapel Hill’s future.”  She said that public funds should not be spent on this endeavor since video conferencing and internet research could provide the needed information.

 

Item 2 – Bids for Construction of the Town Operations Center

 

Assistant Town Manager Bruce Heflin explained that there were five action items before the Council for consideration this evening.  He said there were three resolutions regarding bid awards, an ordinance that would delegate the Town Manager the authority to conduct hearings and make determinations regarding whether a bidder on a Town construction project had adequate grounds to withdraw its bid, and an ordinance to amend the Capital Project Ordinance for the project.

 

Mr. Heflin said the first resolution, R-1a, would award a bid to Hannah Utilities, Inc. for the utility construction associated with construction of the Town Operations Center (TOC), which would include water and sanitary sewer lines, and the sanitary sewer pump station.  He stated the bid amount was $1,368,437.

 

Mr. Heflin said the second resolution, R-1b, would award a bid to Sanford Contractors, Inc. for off-site roadway improvements, including Millhouse Road, the intersection of Millhouse and Eubanks Roads, and the intersection of Eubanks Road and NC 86.  He noted that the bid award would be for $1,989,440.

 

Mr. Heflin noted that Triangle Grading and Paving, who was originally the low bidder, had withdrawn their bid at 1:30 p.m. on Friday afternoon.

 

The third resolution, Mr. Heflin said, would be R-1c, would be for the main construction and site improvements for the TOC, including the transit facility and related support structures, the three main buildings at Public Works and related support structures, all of the associated site work, and connections and miscellaneous expenses.  Mr. Heflin said because the low bid exceeded the budget, they had spent some time identifying other sources of revenue which were detailed in Attachment 1 of the materials.  He said they had also identified possible reductions in cost, and those were identified in Attachment 2.

 

Mr. Heflin requested that the Council adopt R-1c to allow them to go forward with the bid award, while at the same time allow us to continue to negotiate with the contractor to perhaps lower the cost even further.

 

Mr. Heflin stated that the fourth resolution, R-2, would authorize the Manager to hold hearings and make a determination as to whether or not Triangle Grading and Paving had adequate grounds to withdraw their bid for the roadway improvements portion of the project.  He said that what this meant was that Triangle Grading and Paving had withdrawn from the process, but their bid bond was still at risk.

 

Finally, Mr. Heflin said, there were two budget ordinances for the Council’s consideration, O-1 and O-2, one for the Public Works portion of the project and one for the Transportation portion.

 

Mayor Foy referred to page 3 of the project ordinance amendments, regarding the budget for the transit portion, and asked what it meant when it stated the current budget was $7.5 million for financing proceeds.  He asked if a loan was being paid off.  Ms. Johnson replied that when they had originally planned the budget for the project, they were uncertain about how promptly the federal and State grants would be received.  She continued that they had budgeted to finance a short term loan, but that figure had been removed because they no longer needed the loan.

 

Council Member Harrison cautioned the Manager and Attorney about the vote taken at the Transportation Board meeting on this issue.  He said their motion included some language about a having a “legal instrument” for the Town in order to make the action proceed.  Mr. Horton  responded they knew of that and did not see a problem.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER VERKERK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-1a.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY  (9-0).

 

A RESOLUTION AWARDING A BID FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE TOWN OPERATIONS CENTER OFF-SITE UTILITY IMPROVEMENTS (2005-06-20/R-1a)

 

WHEREAS, the Town of Chapel Hill has solicited formal bids by legal notice on May 24, 2005 and May 26, 2005 in accordance with G.S. 143-129 for construction of the Town Operations Center off-site utility improvements; and

 

WHEREAS, the following bids were received and opened on June 14, 2005;

 

Contractors

Total

Hannah Utilities, Inc.

$1,368,437.00

Pipeline Utilities, Inc.

$1,906,222.00

Billings & Garrett, Inc.

$1,495,000.00

Triangle Grading and Paving, Inc.

$1,424,618.00

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town accepts the bid and authorizes the Town Manager to execute a contract, contingent on the review and approval of the North Carolina Department of Transportation, to the lowest responsive bidder, Hannah Utilities, Inc., in the amount of $1,368,437.00.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER VERKERK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-1b.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY  (9-0).

 

A RESOLUTION AWARDING A BID FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE TOWN OPERATIONS CENTER OFF-SITE ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS (2005-06-20/R-1b)

 

WHEREAS, the Town of Chapel Hill has solicited formal bids by legal notice on May 24, 2005 and May 26, 2005 in accordance with G.S. 143-129 for construction of the Town Operations Center off-site roadway improvements; and

 

WHEREAS, the following bids were received and opened on June 14, 2005;

 

Contractors

Total

Sanford Contractors, Inc.

$1,989,440.00

Mountain States Contractors, LLC.

$2,160,790.00

Triangle Grading and Paving, Inc. – BID WITHDRAWN

$1,290,438.68

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town accepts the bid and authorizes the Town Manager to execute a contract, contingent on the review and approval of the North Carolina Department of Transportation, to the lowest responsive bidder, Sanford Contractors, Inc., in the amount of $1,989,440.00.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER VERKERK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-1c.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY  (9-0).

 

A RESOLUTION AWARDING A BID FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE TOWN OPERATIONS CENTER (2005-06-20/R-1c)

 

WHEREAS, the Town of Chapel Hill has solicited formal bids by legal notice on May 5, 2005 in accordance with G.S. 143-129 for construction of the Town Operations Center; and

 

WHEREAS, the following bids were received and opened on May 13, 2005;

 

Contractors

Public Works

Transportation

Shared Areas

Total

Clancy and Theys Construction Company

$23,863,000

$16,000,000

$1,400,000

$41,263,000

D.H. Griffin Construction Company

$21,430,700

$15,369,000

$1,152,000

$37,951,700

T.A. Loving Company

$23,950,000

$15,900,000

$1,650,000

$41,500,000

 

WHEREAS, cost reduction measures have been negotiated with the low bidder to provide a savings of approximately $1,265,000 to the Public Works portion of the project;

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town authorizes the Town Manager to execute a contract, contingent on the review and approval of the North Carolina Department of Transportation, to the lowest responsive bidder, D.H. Griffin Construction Company, in the amount of $36,686,811.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER GREENE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-2.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY  (9-0).

 

A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE TOWN MANAGER TO CONDUCT HEARINGS AND MAKE DETERMINATIONS UNDER N.C. GENERAL STATUTE SECTION 143-129.1 REGARDING WHETHER BIDS MAY BE WITHDRAWN WITHOUT LOSS OF BID SECURITY BASED ON SUBSTANTIAL ERRORS MADE IN GOOD FAITH (2005-06-20/R-2)

 

BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town Manager or his designee is hereby authorized to conduct hearings and make determinations required by North Carolina General Statute Sec. 143-129.1 regarding the withdrawal of bids based on substantial mistake without forfeiture of bid bonds.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER VERKERK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER WARD, ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE O-1.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY     (9-0).

 

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE CAPITAL PROJECT ORDINANCE FOR A NEW TRANSPORTATION OPERATIONS CENTER (2005-06-20/O-1)

 

BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that, pursuant to Section 13.2 of Chapter 159 of the General Statutes of North Carolina, the following grant project ordinance is hereby amended as follows:

 

SECTION I

 

The grant project as authorized by the Town Council is for the construction of the Transit portion of the Town Operations Center.  Funds available for this project include local contributions from the Town’s Transportation Capital Reserve Fund and grants and agreements from the Federal Transit Administration and the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

 

SECTION II

 

The Manager of the Town of Chapel Hill is hereby directed to proceed with the implementation of the project within the terms of the grant agreements executed with the Federal Transit Authority and the North Carolina Department of Transportation within the funds appropriated herein.

 

SECTION III

 

Revenues anticipated to be available to the Town to complete the project are hereby amended as follows:

 

 

SECTION IV

 

Amounts appropriated for capital projects are hereby amended as follows:

 

 

SECTION V

 

The Manager is directed to report annually on the financial status of the project in an informational section to be included in the Annual Report.  He shall also keep the Council informed of any unusual occurrences.

 

SECTION VI

 

Copies of this project ordinance shall be entered into the Minutes of the Council and copies shall be filed within five days of adoption with the Manager, Finance Director and Town Clerk.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

 

COUNCIL MEMBER VERKERK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER WARD, ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE O-2.  THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY     (9-0).

 

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND A CAPITAL PROJECT ORDINANCE FOR A NEW PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING OPERATIONS CENTER (2005-06-20/O-2)

 

BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that, pursuant to Section 13.2 of Chapter 159 of the General Statutes of North Carolina, the following project ordinance is hereby amended as follows:

 

SECTION I

 

The project as authorized by the Town Council is for the Public Works and Housing portion of the Town Operations Center.  Funds available for the project include proceeds from the issuance of an installment contract for Certificates of Participation, sales tax refunds, interest income and contributions from grants and agreements from federal and State agencies.

 

SECTION II

 

The Manager of the Town of Chapel Hill is hereby directed to proceed with the implementation of the project within the terms of the grant agreements executed with the Federal Transit Authority and the North Carolina Department of Transportation within the funds appropriated herein.

 

SECTION III

 

Revenues anticipated to be available to the Town to complete the project are hereby amended as follows:

 

 

SECTION IV

 

Amounts appropriated for capital projects are hereby amended as follows:

 

 

 

SECTION V

 

The Manager is directed to report annually on the financial status of the project in an informational section to be included in the Annual Report.  He shall also keep the Council informed of any unusual occurrences.

 

SECTION VI

 

Copies of this project ordinance shall be entered into the Minutes of the Council and copies shall be filed within five days of adoption with the Manager, Finance Director and Town Clerk.

 

This the 20th day of June, 2005.

 

The special meeting was adjourned at 7:20 p.m.