With several infrastructure projects on its hands this year totaling approximately $6 million, the Warsaw Redevelopment Commission approved a contract Monday with HWC Engineering to help the city develop two others.
Cost of the contract is not to exceed $12,000. City Planner Jeremy Skinner said, “This is the contract we’ve been looking at for the last couple of months. It’s pretty much the same as the last time you looked at it.”
The contract is for HWC to work with the Redevelopment Commission on two potential projects – the Gatke property and a mixed-use development in downtown Warsaw.
The mixed-use development is more of an idea at this point, Skinner explained this morning.
“We’ve had talks with private individuals about a downtown project. The objective of the (HWC) contract is to sit down with those individuals to discuss it. There’s no specific plan. It’s in its infancy,” Skinner said.
The HWC contract will help determine if the idea can be taken from the infancy stage of the mixed-used downtown project to reality.
“There are various places that are under developed and that’s what we’ll focus on. There are no specific places. We’ll look at areas that are under utilized,” he said.
At Monday’s meeting, Skinner said the HWC contract wasn’t approved until this year because the funds for the contract weren’t in the 2016 budget.
After the contract was unanimously approved, Mayor Joe Thallemer told the Commission, “The HWC contract is going to allow us to move ahead. A lot of times these projects, collaborative projects, require folks that have experience in bringing together the public and private sector. The city, obviously, is involved with these projects, but finding private investors to leverage and to develop in the community is a big part of it. Typically, neither of us do it alone.”
He said the important part of the contract was the experience HWC would bring to the community to help put the two projects together. “Well worth the time and resources to get this done,” Thallemer said.
Commission President Tim Meyer stated, “There’s simply not enough time for the planning department to digest all the projects we have on the table right now.”
Thallemer said he, the planning department and the Redevelopment Commission collaborate with the consultants to tell them what they want and then the consultants bring in their expertise. Every project has a set of different circumstances, he said.
“It’s just good to have somebody with experience putting these private-public projects together so that they work, so that they’re good partnerships and productive and accomplish what you all want. I’m really excited about it,” Thallemer said.
Skinner said, “We have, obviously, a number of projects we’re doing this year – 300 North, Buffalo Street, Husky Trail – all go to construction this year.”
He hopes Husky Trail will go to bid letting by the end of this month “so we will know cost-wise where Husky Trail comes in.”
Husky Trail is in the Eastern TIF district, while the Buffalo Street redevelopment project is in the Downtown Redevelopment (Central) TIF district.
“Our intent is to go to construction with that, probably in March. Bid letting in March,” Skinner indicated for the Buffalo Street project.
The CR 300N trail project was awarded in December to G&G Hauling and construction is set for the spring.
Skinner said the city is having conversations regarding development of Phase II of the Technology Park, which will probably start this year. Whether it’s completed this year has yet to be determined, but the engineering is underway.
Commission member and City Council President Mike Klondaris said, “I think it’s money well spent.” Skinner stated, “We’re looking at about $6 million in infrastructure projects this year.”
“It’s a good problem to have,” Klondaris said.
Eighty percent of the Husky Trail project will be reimbursed by Indiana Department of Transportation grant money. A bond issue was done for the Buffalo Street project, but Skinner said they’re attempting to get grant money for that as well. “The nice thing about that is, it’s not all city money,” Skinner said.
Klondaris asked about the second phase of the Market Street project. Skinner replied the target date for it is 2018, and INDOT grant money for it won’t be available until then.
In other business, the Redevelopment Commission:
• Approved G&G Hauling’s bid for work on the CR 300N trail project.
Skinner reminded the commission that they did approve it in December by an email vote but wanted a vote by the board for its meeting minutes and to confirm the email vote.
“It was under the original estimate by, I believe, seventy-some, eighty-some thousand,” Skinner said. “We got a pretty good price on it.”
Bids were opened Dec. 14. The two companies that submitted bids were G&G Hauling and Phend & Brown Excavating. The bid was awarded to G&G for $816,034, with an asphalt option for another approximate $50,000.
The bid also was approved by the Board of Public Works and Safety in December.
• Approved January claims, including: $634.87 to Umbaugh & Associates for a portion of an investment fee; $4,585.50 to Faegre Baker Daniels for ongoing work on the Buffalo Street project; $34,989.15 to The Troyer Group for engineering services for the CR 300N project; $175.94 to the Times-Union for a bid advertisement on the 300N project; and $500 to Clevenger Insurance for a bond on each of the five commission members as required by Indiana code.
• Was given the oath of office by Thallemer.
• Re-elected Meyer as president and Rick Snodgrass as vice president.
• Heard Jeremy Mullins will serve on the commission as the Warsaw Community Schools representative, though he is a non-voting member.
• Will meet for its February meeting at 4 p.m. Feb. 6 in the city council chambers.
