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Tuesday, January 6, 2009 4:24 PM CST
Council to vote on seeking bids for depot work
By HERB MEEKER, Staff Writer
hmeeker@jg-tc.com
MATTOON — The bidding process for renovation of the historic railroad depot is just one vote away, a city official said.
Commissioners are expected to vote on plans and specifications tonight to authorize seeking bids for the restoration of the former Illinois Central Railroad Depot, now used by Amtrak as a passenger station. The city received a $2.74 million commitment in federal funding for the project with private fundraising helping to cover most of the city’s 20 percent share on the construction project that will renovate the 90-year-old structure.
The council meets at 6:30 p.m. tonight in Mattoon City Hall.
“The council is ready to bid with this action. We have a letter to proceed by IDOT. And we could start the work early this year. The bid opening date is Feb. 6,” said City Administrator Alan Gilmore.
The renovations will include addition of a public elevator; water, sewer and restroom improvements; climate control system updates; masonry, brick and marble repairs; and overall refurbishing of the interior and exterior of the building that has served train passengers for nearly a century.
The council has the right to reject the bids if they exceed existing funding.
In other business, the council will consider joining a lawsuit with other communities against the company making atrazine herbicide that runs off from surrounding farm fields around lakes, ponds or rivers used in community water supply systems.
Though current testing has not revealed a level of atrazine that could exceed health hazard standards, the city does want to move ahead to tackle this before it becomes a problem through more strident testing standards in the future or changes in farming methods with the herbicide, officials said.
Water department Superintendent Jim Lange said this could provide funding for preventive maintenance in Mattoon and other communities involved in the lawsuit.
“The EPA standards could change on this or there could be farming changes in the future. This (lawsuit) could provide a type of treatment or equipment to handle it in our treatment plant. This is not a hazard now, but it could cause us problems later,” Lange said.
Council members will also consider a public works purchase change that allows a local purchasing preference on competitive bidding. Local contractors could receive city bids if they were within 2 percent or $2,000 of the lowest bid submitted by an out-of-town contractor, according to the proposal.
This would only apply to contracts funded by city revenues, not by state or federal money.
In other fiscal matters, the council will consider an emergency contract to rebuild and upgrade bar screens at the city’s wastewater treatment plant. Approval of the 2009 street maintenance program is also on the agenda tonight, as well as an auditing services contract.
Residents who want to make presentations or ask questions of the council can do so during the presentations, petitions and communications session. Speakers are limited to three minutes and action cannot be taken that evening by the council members on issues brought up.
Contact Herb Meeker at hmeeker@jg-tc.com or 238-6869.
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gringa wrote on Jan 5, 2009 11:26 PM: