MARCO ISLAND — Athletes of all ages have been hoping for more playing fields on Marco Island and council may be able to grant their wish at a meeting Monday.
A decision on whether to purchase a new baseball diamond at Winterberry Park, as well as a decision on whether to purchase software for the building and code departments during a building industry slow down, are among several discussion items for City Council.
BASEBALL FIELD, LIGHTING AT WINTERBERRY PARK
Parks and Recreation Director Bryan Milk is suggesting council award a contract with Boran Craig Barber Engel to construct the baseball field at Winterberry Park, which is located on Winterberry Drive between Sand Hill Street and Capri Court, for no more than $222,522.
Milk reported that another $85,000 is also available in capital improvement dollars for five new light poles and electric control panels to be installed for the field.
ANNUAL AUDITING FIRM CONSIDERED
The contract with the city’s annual auditor, CPA Associates, expires this year and a new firm, Marcum Rachlin, is recommended to perform the city’s annual financial audit for 2009 through 2011.
Total cost for three years is $185,476 and Marcum Rachlin was the lowest bidder.
NORTH WATER TREATMENT PLANT GENERATOR
Public Works Director Rony Joel said the original contractor, who sold the city a 1,600 kilowatt generator for $964,037, was no longer able to install the generator at their initial price. Patrick’s Electric Company bid installation at $174,037. The full project would remain under the $1.5 million budget and provide emergency backup power in case of power outages.
CITY INVESTMENTS
City Finance Director Patricia Bliss is recommending the city move money not needed for daily operations from a Fifth Third account to one of two investment pools. She recommends a Florida Municipal Investment Trust, which is a short-term bond fund operated by the Florida League of Cities and Local Government Surplus Funds Trust Investment Pool, which is a money market operated by the State of Florida Board of Administrators.
The switch will allow for overnight liquidity and increased earnings from .35 percent annually at Fifth Third Bank to .85 percent annually, Bliss reported.
GRANTS FOR TREES
About $220,000 is left over in Florida Department of Transportation grants for trees planted along the roadside of North Barfield Drive, from San Marco road to Piedmont Circle.
Council will decide whether to use that to extend the project by planting trees further along North Barfield Drive from Piedmont to North Collier Boulevard.
DESIGN FOR RELOCATION UTILITIES NEAR JOLLEY BRIDGE
Council will decide whether to approve a contract with Kimley-Horn and Associates for the firm to design plans for the relocation of utilities near the Judge S.S. Jolley Bridge as FDOT prepares to begin the construction of a new span for the bridge. Design estimate to relocate utilities would take about four months and cost $89,000, per advice from Joel to council on the issue.
BUILDING PERMIT SOFTWARE
Community Development Director Steve Olmsted is recommending council approve the purchase of new software products for the building department to streamline the process for permitting, planning, zoning, environmental monitoring and code compliance.
The software and hardware purchase will allow access to databases while employees are out in the field, he wrote in his recommendation to council.
“City Council and staff have discussed the need for this upgrade in software and capabilities at this time, during the present slump in new building permits, and the staff recommendation is that during this slow period staff could be learning and implementing the new systems in advance of higher demand,” Olmsted added.
Cost for software and hardware equipment is $119,522 with annual maintenance about $10,000 per year.
Cost of current software is budgeted at about $4,700 annually.
MORE COUNCIL
See related story, Seeking a predator, and full council agenda in the related links for more on the council meeting, which begins 5:30 p.m., Monday, in the Community Room, 51 Bald Eagle Drive.
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Comments » 3
playballonK writes:
$220K for a ball field? Howsa bout plowing out an infield and throwing up a few more light posts, $20k, $30k, $40K at the most!? This is like a bad Disney ride we can't get off.
Rony Joel up to his old tricks, but this city LOVES him. How do you all feel about things?
shadow writes:
so rony buys a generator and the guy he buys it from ain't "available" anymore....why in the world wouldn't wayne walduck and the council question this guy's (rony)decision making process?
let's see...current software for permitting 4,700/yr...new software 10,000/yr...you gotta be kidding. permits on this island have to be at an all time low...is someone expecting a boon to the economy in the next year or so....where are we getting all this money? they don't need access to the data while out in the field...they can drive the city car back to the city hall (can't be more than 3 miles) and access the database...come on folks...this is beyond ridiculous.
i thought Obama was building the bridge...why are we paying to design the location of utilities...what utilities? a speed limit sign?
or maybe it's for the cameras that reinke and moss bought that are in t he storage building that were a joke...
this article surely is an April Fool's joke...they can'tbe serious about any of this...but wait...most folks have left the island and that's when all spending hell breaks loose.
Marconian writes:
Shadow obviously doesn't understand the long term cost efficiency of the on board software that's needed in the field.
On the generator topic he is clueless! The article clearly stated that the person/contractor that bid on the installation could no longer do it at the original bid price...With out being said, probably due to council not being able to make a decision and tabling talks to a later date rather than conclude the topic! which no doubt played a part in the increase in price..Cant expect the price to stay the same over a period of months and years!
And the utilities duh! there is power e.t.c in the ground by the proposed new bridge span site and it has to be relocated! the moneys for a bridge not the relocation of existing utilities.This is most of the problem here on marco people thinking they are experts on everything but in reality they don't have a clue! But they sure know how to complain....
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