Payments Totaling Over $900K Toward New Street Department Facility Approved By BOW

Six payment applications for the Warsaw Public Works Department’s new facility - solely for services provided during the issuance of bonds for the project - were approved by the Board of Public Works and Safety Friday.
A seventh disbursement toward the building project itself also was granted.
Warsaw Community and Economic Development Director Jeremy Skinner listed the first six as $13,565 for Baker Tilly; $65,000 for Baker Tilly; $750 for MuniPlatform; $22,277 for Standard & Poor’s; $15,750 for Rockhill Pinnick; and $95,190.83 for Barnes & Thornburg, the city’s legal representative for the bond. The total for bond issuance costs is $212,532.83. The pay applications will be paid from bond proceeds.
“All of those claims dealt with, the whole process of issuing those bonds from Barnes & Thornburg and Baker Tilly leading up to the Standard & Poor’s. That is what it cost to get our bond rating as we go out to get on the bond market,” Skinner said. “And then the MuniPlatform is what they use to sell the bonds, more or less, so it’s just a fee to use those programs. But that was for the issuance of the bonds.”
The last disbursement request Skinner presented, for the new facility project itself, was for $692,885.66 to Robinson Construction for property acquisition and demolition services.
“After today, there shouldn’t be any more service unless we missed one. I tried to get all of them for the issuance, but there might be one we missed, but after today most of the claims that you’ll see from now on will just be as the project is being constructed,” Skinner stated.
The bond for the new Public Works facility is about $13.5 million. The substantial completion date is set for July 31, 2027, according to information provided at prior city meetings. Total square feet of the main building floor area, including mezzanines is 50,125. Three properties on Center Street to the east of the current facility were purchased to allow the facility to be shifted to the east.
Skinner told the Board of Works after each of the claims was signed, they’d be submitted to Huntington Bank, who will pay out the claims. Clerk-Treasurer Lynne Christiansen said Huntington Bank was holding the bond proceeds as the city doesn’t physically have the funds itself.
“As this project goes on, Lynne and I will get monthly statements on those bond funds. And as we present the pay applications, we’ll keep you abreast as to where those funds stand,” Skinner stated.
The Board of Works unanimously approved the seven claims. The Warsaw Redevelopment Commission will be asked to approve the claims as well at their meeting Monday as the bond is a Redevelopment Authority bond.
Skinner also presented a bond payment of $185,969 for the Belle Augusta subdivison project, which the board approved 3-0.
“This is the second disbursement for the work completed to date,” he said.
The funds are from the Residential Infrastructure Fund, a state loan program.
“So we’ll fill out the form you have, you’ll approve it, sign it and then send it down for the release of those funds,” Skinner explained, later adding he was excited to seeing the project get finished.
The original amount of the loan was $1,055,000. The total of previous disbursements was $352,772.
Phase five of the Belle Augusta housing development on North CR 225E includes 40 new lots.
Public Works Superintendent Dustin Dillon requested permission to move forward with a contract with VS Engineering Inc. for the study of improvements and recommendations for the Detroit and Pope streets intersection.
“It’s an area where we’ve had challenges for many years. There’s just a growing need to look harder at that intersection, what we can do to improve traffic flow as well,” he said.
Mayor Jeff Grose acknowledged the Traffic Commission has looked at the intersection many times. He said VS Engineering will hopefully come up with a best-case option for that difficult area.
“They’ll come up with some different scenarios that we can play with. Initially, at a low cost, temporary type of situation as well as a mid-range and then a high-level, future costs as well. We’re very confident that VS will be able to provide a solution that we can at least do something to make it a better place for the community,” Dillon stated.
The Board approved the $16,000 contract.
In other business, the board approved:
• A $178,690.45 pay application from Michiana Contracting for the traffic signal modernization at the intersection of Lake and Main street, as requested by Dillon. He said the project, by the end of the day Thursday, was pretty much underwraps and completion near.
• Dillon’s request to purchase a rear-load garbage truck from Pyramid Equipment through Sourcewell for $228,241.53, including the trade-in of a 2004 Chevrolet rear-load garbage truck that is currently at the Parks Department. Dillon said the Public Works Department will hand down their 2014 garbage truck to the Parks Department.
• Dillon’s request to obtain sealed quotes for the removal and replacement of sidewalks along both sides of North Grant Street.
“This will be the area heading north from Sheridan up to (Oakwood Cemetery). There is a gate on Grant Street going up to the cemetery. Again, this is just to tag onto the Lincoln sidewalk project that you see so many people in the community using out in that area right now. A lot of folks do go walking in the cemetery just to get away from traffic. It’ll be a great extension of that project,” he said.
Funding will come out of the Public Works Cumulative Capital Development Fund. He said advertisement of the work would be sent out in the afternoon, with bid opening to be at a Board of Works meeting “shortly.”
• Accepting a $10,000 reimbursement grant from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security for Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory to replace and update training equipment.
• The closure of Indiana Street between East Center and East Fort Wayne streets on Oct. 11 from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the annual Lincolnway Cubmobile, as requested by Anthony Wayne Area Council, Scouting America. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. No one representing the applicant was present at the board meeting.
• The three travel requests and the new hire/change in payroll report from the Warsaw Human Resource Department.
The new hire/change in payroll report included a merit increase for Blake Deaton, engineering assistant, in the city engineering department, to $31.75 per hour; new hire of patrol officer Lewis Fuller, a former WPD officer, at the Warsaw Police Department at $2,900.99 biweekly; and new hire of Mason Sumner as a community compliance officer at WPD at $25 per hour.