During a meeting July 17, the Cottonwood City Council approved an additional $300,000 for cost overruns related to roadwork on Mingus Avenue. The city estimated that the project will cost $243,000 more than the planned costs of $2.1 million, so city engineer Robert Winiecke requested approval of $300,000 in case of further overruns.
“The good news is we’re almost done with it,” Winiecke said at the meeting. “Unfortunately it comes at a cost.”
A significant portion of the funds for the Mingus construction — $845,000 — were allocated by the federal government, which required the Arizona Department of Transportation to oversee the project as opposed to the city.
The original agreement, which the city entered into in June 2017, charges the city 15 percent of costs for the project, along with costs of overruns.
According to Winiecke, many major overruns come from traffic control and safety-related concerns, such as barricades, temporary signage, warning lights and personnel to manage traffic flow. In addition, the project has required further costs for granite mulch, weed control and erosion control.
Winiecke said he believes that the incorrect cost estimates for these items stemmed from a longer work time on the project than originally planned.
“What I’m asking is to have you authorize up to $300,000, just so any unforeseens that we have we can at least have authorization to take care of that,” Winiecke said to council July 17.
The funding requirement made some council members frustrated as the city would be responsible for cost overruns created through no fault of the city.
“It’s frustrating,” said city attorney David Morse. “This isn’t negotiable. When ADOT comes to us with this boilerplate IGA, it’s take it or leave it.”
Councilwoman Tosca Henry expressed a similar sentiment.
“Isn’t there anything we can do to not have to pay even the lower number you named,” she said.
“We’re so close to being completed at this point. We really don’t have much latitude to go ahead and take care of it,” said Winiecke.
Winiecke suggested that the council seek out the Northern Arizona Council of Governments for help on this matter.
The council approved the funds, but also wrote a letter to ADOT about the project’s funding issues, as well as its long timeline.
“We’ve become the scapegoat for a project that just didn’t seem to be managed very well,” said city manager Doug Bartosh. “I mean the timeline — nine and a half months to get that section of roadway done — just seemed extraordinary to me.”
In addition to approving highway funds, the council approved $5,000 in funding to the Old Town Association, as they do most years. The funding for OTA had been delayed due to the recent embezzlement of tens of thousands of dollars from the OTA’s bank accounts, allegedly by the group’s former treasurer.
The council sought confirmation from the OTA that its finances could be kept secure before allocating funds to the group. OTA president Brenda Clouston and Cottonwood Chamber of Commerce President Christian Oliva del Rio spoke before the council about a new arrangement between the OTA and the Chamber of Commerce. The arrangement will include shared oversight of OTA funds by the Chamber of Commerce as a means of additional security.
The council supported the OTA’s plans, but decided to wait until September to fully fund the OTA.
Jon Hecht can be reached at 634-8551, or email jhecht@larsonnewspapers.com
