- April 18, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
City Councilman Steven Nobile, and some members of the public who spoke at the council meeting, were concerned: $8 million seemed like a lot of money to renovate and expand the city's old community center.
"I'm torn on this project, because on the one hand this is a very important project for this community: We need this community center," Nobile said during the Jan. 17 council meeting. "But on the other hand, I’m looking at these costs, and I’m sitting back and I’m thinking, 'Jeez.'"
He noted that early projections for the project were about half of the current projected total project cost of $7,997,500.
"I’m a little concerned that we’re spending a little more than we need to to get this project off the ground," Nobile continued. He turned to city project manager Carl Cote and asked him to justify the price tag. "Just make me feel a little fuzzy that this is what it’s going to cost, and we’re not getting gold-plated sinks," Nobile said.
"We are bursting at the seams. … I see this as a neighborhood revitalization project."
—MILISSA HOLLAND, Palm Coast mayor, on the need to expand the community center
The answer came from Lon Neuman, the director of operations for Ajax Building Corporation, the firm the city has chosen to do the work. "I feel there’s no gold plating at all, but at the same time, it’s not a square box," Neuman said. "This is a very competitive cost for this type of building, and I think this type of building is something we’re going to be proud of."
The City Council voted unanimously to approve the proposed guaranteed maximum price of $7,830,036 for the project's construction phase after City Manager Jim Landon explained that the project the city would be voting on would be a much more extensive one than the less costly renovation project that the city had considered in 2013.
When the city was considering project costs of about $4 million, he explained, the proposed project consisted of adding a single room to the 1975 community center at the intersection of Palm Coast Parkway and Clubhouse Drive. But community groups kept requesting more space to meet in, and the city realized that much of the community center building didn't meet Americans With Disabilities Act standards.
Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland had said in a workshop a week before that increasing costs for materials and labor have also pushed up the project's price.
The current plan will make the community center about three times its current size. It will total 21,232 square feet, with three large “function rooms” (including the former City Council chambers), plus two smaller rooms. Outside, there will be additional parking, a full-size basketball court, a play area, bike racks, a pond, a patio and a trailhead with restrooms. Many of the trees surrounding the center will remain there.
Community groups that use the center have to be out by Jan. 31, and construction is slated to begin in February. The center is expected to be ready for use in March 2018.
Rescheduling or relocating all of the community activities that will be displaced from the community center, Landon said in response to questions from audience members, "is trying to put 10 pounds of flour in a 5-pound bag. So it’s a challenge, but we’re doing our best."
Rates to use the center are not expected to change, Landon said after Councilwoman Heidi Shipley asked if community groups would have to pay more after construction. The city is paying cash for the building, so it doesn't need to create revenue to pay off construction costs, he said.
The construction contract with Ajax Building is an at-risk contract: any cost overruns will become Ajax's responsibility, and any savings will be divided between the city and Ajax, with the city receiving 80% and the builder receiving 20%.
The construction phase of the project includes two dozen bid packages for services like concrete and electrical installation, and seven of those will go to contractors from Flagler County or Volusia County. Those seven bid packages total more that half of the construction cost.
For details and photos as the project progresses, see palmcoastgov.com/communitycenter.
