FINANCE COMMITTEE

September 2, 2008 

Minutes

 

 

Councilors:   Stone, Palmer, Farrington, Blanchette, Wheeler, Hawes, D’Errico

Staff:            Cyr, Barrett, Dawes, Heitmann, Ring

 

1.                 Consent Agenda

A motion was made and seconded to approve the Consent Agenda.

a.      Quitclaim Deed – Dymond – 133 Fourth Street

 

2.                 Bids/Purchasing

a.      Plow and Dump Bodies – Fleet Maintenance – Howard P. Fairfield - $149,660

At a recent Committee meeting, Cyr noted that a bid had been awarded for the cab and chassis for two new plow trucks.  This bid is for the plow and dump bodies.  One bid was received from Howard P. Fairfield.  The City has had a good working relationship with the company.   Palmer moved staff recommendation; Blanchette seconded it.   Responding to Stone, Dawes said that only two vendors attended the pre-bid conference, HP Fairfield and Tenco.  Tenco asked for an extension of the bid period because they were waiting for pricing information, but staff felt it was too late. In talking with Tenco, Dawes said their bid would have been considerably higher. Stone asked about the payback.  Dawes said the $149,660 will be a savings to the Public Works Department’s sand and salt use due to the computerized equipment.  Stone noted that he would have liked to have seen the price difference between the plow equipment and the computer equipment. 

 

b.     Hogan Road Extension – Engineering – Recommendation Pending Final Evaluation

Cyr said there was an award recommendation but it was pending staff evaluation of the received bids.  The work is for previously committed projects to be undertaken by the City in the Bangor Mall area.  There is a TIF involved but the City was required to sign a letter of commitment with the MDOT to insure certain improvements for the WalMart project to go forward.  The first part of the project is the Hogan Road Extension.  7 bids were received ranging from $392,922 to $585,000.  The low bid was from SH Bridges Construction.  Ring has checked references and current information regarding SH Bridges, and he believes that the company is capable of performing the task both technically and financially.  Responding to Stone, Cyr said part of the annual budget resolve contained $325,000 in traffic impact fees, $325,000 in contributions from others, and estimated $930,000 is needed in TIF funding.  She noted that the funding is for other projects as well as the Hogan Road.  The estimated Hogan Road extension cost is $450,000, which is under the original spring estimate and the recent Engineering estimate.  Wheeler asked the timeline involved.  Ring said the City Council’s authorized agreement requires construction to be completed by the time the new WalMart opens in May/June 2009 and he expects the work to be completed by the end of October 2008.  Wheeler asked what projects could result in a cost overrun for the project.  Ring said he doesn’t anticipate additional work. He noted that borings have been done on site for rock removal and dealing with ledge may cause a slight overrun.  If additional piping is required, it would be a slight overrun.  Responding to Wheeler, Ring said there is an approximate $30,000 difference between the low bidder and the second lowest bidder.  In response to Palmer, Ring said the Hogan Road Extension should be activated by June 2009. He spoke about the relocation of the Kittredge Road.  Responding to Stone, Cyr said a requisition for payment is received from the contractor in the standard AIA construction format which lists each contracted item with a percentage of completion.  It has been signed off and attested to by an engineer or architect under the City’s employ.  Ring also spoke about a 5% retainage amount.  A motion was made and seconded to approval staff recommendation.  The item will be referred to full Council.     

 

3.                 Tolling Agreement with EPA – Hows Corner Site

Heitmann explained that the City is a potentially responsible party (PRP) for this site and has been part of a joint defense group that has been working with the EPA and Maine DEP since 1998.  The EPA and DEP have a claim against the PRP’s for $1M in past costs.  In 2007, the City and other PRP’s executed a tolling agreement extending the time by which the EPA and DEP might bring suit to attempt to collect those costs.  This agreement was necessary because the legally allowed period for bringing such a suit was nearing its end. The EPA is now requesting execution of another tolling agreement further extending the statute of limitations to June 30, 2009.  Doing so will allow negotiations to continue and provide the joint defense group the opportunity to continue to negotiate toward a final settlement.  The tolling agreement requires that at least 36 PRP’s representing 37,000 gallons of waste participate.  The proposed escrow agreement will allow the PRP Group to retain each signature page until this threshold has been met.  If it is not met, the signature pages will be returned and the statute of limitations’ deadline will not be extended.  This approach insures that the oversight costs are shared by a substantial group of PRP’s.   For the benefit of the public, Wheeler asked for a brief explanation of a tolling agreement.  Heitmann provided a detailed explanation indicating that a tolling agreement stops the statute of limitations time clock.  A motion was made and seconded to recommend approval to full Council at its next meeting.

 

 

4.                 Executive Session – 36 MRSA Section 841 (2) – Hardship Abatement

A motion was made and seconded to move into executive session.

 

5.                 Open Session – Hardship Abatement Decision

OUTCOME?

 

 

Committee adjourned at 4:59 pm.