ASHLAND – Ashland City Council has approved a $71,630 change order for unanticipated costs associated with the construction project at the Brookside Park tennis courts.
Council passed the ordinance to modify an existing contract with Vasco Sports Contractors after contractors and city officials discovered what mayor Matt Miller described a “significant soil issues” on the construction site.
City parks director Jason Counts said the three northernmost of the six old tennis courts were constructed in the 1950s, and the other three courts were built in the 1970s.
The soil under the northern courts, he said, was too loose to allow an asphalt truck to be driven on it. In order to complete the project the soil must be stabilized with concrete.
After consulting multiple contractors, Counts said, the city decided to stabilize the soil down to a 32-inch depth on the north side and a 16-inch depth on the south side.
Counts said the loose soil appears to have been a problem for years, as 14 layers of asphalt were found under the courts.
Even with the change order, barring any additional unforeseen costs, the entire project will cost the city about $75,000, according to Miller.
“We received a state grant for this project in the neighborhood of $300,000,” Miller said. “We had approximately $35,000 or $37,000 in donations raised privately, and the school system, because they use it as their home courts, has agreed to provide approximately $75,000 toward the court construction.”
Finance Director Larry Paxton said the additional expense will come from the existing parks budget.
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, council members approved $204,768 in transfers between funds. Most notably, authorizing a transfer of $32,000 from the dispatch fund to the K9 fund for the purchase of two new K9s for the police department.
Miller said he recommended the purchase after talking with officers about what they needed to do their job better. The dogs assist with drug enforcement and help with officer safety, Miller said.
While a private individual has verbally agreed to pay for the animals, the city must pay for them up front to get them in a timely fashion, he said.
The council also:
— Approved $53,000 in new appropriations for the industrial park fund. Paxton said the new revenue came from the sale of city land in the park to SJE Rhombus for the business’s new building. Miller added the new money may be used to extend Wells Road or complete other projects in that area.
— Authorized the mayor to use a $100,000 grant from the Ohio Development Service Agency’s Abandoned Gas Station Grant Program to remediate the site of the former Roepke Gas Station in front of the city police department. Miller said the soil may have been contaminated when the old gas tanks were removed, and city engineer Shane Kremser applied for, and was awarded, the grant.
— Agreed to a request from economic development director Kathy Goon to modify a tax incentive agreement with D&F Investments. The modification pushes back the start date of the company’s 50 percent, ten-year property tax abatement for the construction of Quick Lane Tire and Auto Center.
— Authorized administration to charge off $79,132 in outstanding debt owed to the city for ambulance services in 2013 and 2014. Paxton said the city has made multiple attempts to collect on the debt and has deemed it uncollectable.
