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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-07-2002 Regular Meeting REGULAR MEETING COMMISSION CHAMBER (Continued from October 3, 2002) October 7, 2002 Augusta Richmond County Commission reconvened at 11:45 a.m., Monday, October 7, 2002, the Honorable Richard Colclough, Mayor Pro Tem, presiding. Present: Hons. Hankerson, Boyles, Mays, Kuhlke, Beard, Cheek, Williams and Bridges, members of Augusta Richmond County Commission. Absent: Hons. Bob Young, Mayor, and Shepard, member of Augusta Richmond County Commission. Also present: Jim Wall; Attorney; George Kolb, Administrator; Lena Bonner, Clerk of Commission; and Nancy Morawski, Deputy Clerk of Commission. The invocation was given by the Rev. Williams. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Madame Clerk, the first item, please. The Clerk: ENGINEERING SERVICES: 42. Report from the Utilities/Public Works Departments regarding a cost impact analysis involved with the request from Thomas J. Norris concerning the water drainage problems and road work at 1704 Orange Avenue and a date when the rd construction of the road can begin. (Referred from September 23 Committee meeting) Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Go ahead. Mr. Kolb: Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, members of the Commission, you do have a report from Teresa Smith regarding the Orange Avenue extension. For the most part, there are some [inaudible] estimates from several contractors, also costed it out themselves in terms of getting this work accomplished, as we were directed to do. And you see those listed. We’re leaving it up to the Commission whether you want us to do it or if you want to contract it to do. I guess my recommendation is that we would have a contractor do it since the funding source is in the dirt road paving project and there is approximately $8 million there. It would save us time. Also, we would not have to let other projects go that we need to get done during this time period. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Cheek? Mr. Cheek: Thank you, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem. I’d like to make a motion that we award this contract to Blair Construction Company. 1 Mr. Speaker: Through a change order? Mr. Cheek: Through a change order, yes, sir. Mr. Beard: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Okay. Mr. Bridges: I understand from reading this that the low bid is not Blair but is Mabus Brothers. Blair came back and added something to their bid. Would make Mabus Brothers the low bid, and I want to make a substitute motion that we’d rather go with the low bid. Mr. Cheek: I am going to second that. Mr. Beard: You either have to make a substitute motion or -- Mr. Bridges: I make the substitute motion we go with the low bid, which is Mabus. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: And you seconded, Andy? Mr. Cheek: Yes, sir. I made my assumption based on the sheet we had here. I was going with the lowest bid on the sheet. So yes, I second that. Mr. Kolb: Could we -- Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, if I may. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Go ahead. Mr. Kolb: Could we have an authorization to make a change order not to exceed $80,000? This was an estimate. It was not actually a true bid that we went out, but we’d like to move forward with it. If you go up, not to exceed $80,000, we can effect it quickly. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Will you accept that as the motion? Mr. Bridges: I’ll withdraw my motion and if the board approves, and make that in the form of a motion. Mr. Cheek: I’ll give it a second second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Now you need to do some clarification for me. Mr. Wall: Well, in parliamentary issues, first, is there any objection to his withdrawing his motion to award the low? 2 Mr. Beard: I’m going to object because I don’t understand what’s going on. And until someone explains to me what’s going on -- I may go with that, but now I’m lost. Mr. Wall: The substitute motion was to award the contract to Mabus Brothers through a change order to be issued to an existing contract and not to exceed cost of $80,000. The original motion was to award to Blair Construction. And so what we are trying -- through a change order. What we are trying to do is to award the contract to a contractor at a not to exceed cost of $80,000 through a change order. And the question is, the difference in the two motions in essence would be which contractor should get it. Mr. Beard: Well, that’s my point. Who is going to make that decision? The Administrator? Mr. Kolb: Yes. Mr. Wall: Well, the motion, the motion that Ulmer has made that is still on the floor is to award to Mabus. The motion that Andy made was to Blair based upon the estimated contract price. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Williams? Mr. Williams: Thank you, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem. Jim, I’m a little confused with the change order situation that came in there. Now we talking about Orange Street and hadn’t nothing been done, so fill me in with the change order and how that get to. Mr. Wall: All right. We have -- [inaudible] expedite the process is the short answer. We have existing contracts with all of these companies, and through execution of a change order we can allow the work to begin immediately upon issuing a notice to proceed, whereas otherwise our purchasing statute we would have to go through a formal bid process, which would be time consuming, and this is simply a method to expedite the process. Mr. Williams: Okay. I understand that. Thank you for the clarification. Not to exceed $80,000? The low bid was what? What was the low on it? Mr. Wall: Well, it was not a true bid. It was an estimate. Because again, the general nature of the work was described to them and based upon that they gave an estimate, which you have there. Mabus Brothers’ estimate was $75,305, with 45 working days of construction time. Blair Construction estimated $73,850, again with 45 days construction time, 10 days after approval. Mr. Williams: Now if we say not to exceed, don’t you think, or at least I think they are going to go up to the $80,000? I mean who going to come back and say, you know, we just estimated so we going to be under? 3 Mr. Wall: This is based upon unit prices, so they would have to -- I’m assuming, am I correct, Mike? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Go ahead, Mr. Greene. Mr. Greene: What we did, Commissioners, is we were asked to give cost estimates for a contract and also in-house [inaudible] to do this work, to extend Orange Avenue down approximately [inaudible] for the property owners to be able to access their property and build their house. We have six foot right of way. This is heavy wooded area. It’s never been developed. We asked three existing contractors. We have three contractors that have similar work of this nature that are doing -- they have [inaudible], they have asphalt, they have dirt, etc. Grading and all. In their contracts. And we have unit prices. We asked them to go out and look at it, give us estimates. That’s all it is. It is not a bid. It is estimate on what they feel that they could do the job for, how much they would need as far as these [inaudible], and also the time frame, when they could start and when they could finish. They did this. They submitted this. And the reason --Mabus was actually lower, and lower price than Blair’s. Blair failed, when they submitted it, and we caught it and they did also, they failed to add in the price for backfill material. So that’s why their price actually increased a little bit. And our recommendation is that we go to a contractor. We have unit prices. When they do this work, they will have to give us how many feet of pipe, what size, how many catch basins at a set price, how many yards of fill at set price, how many yards and tons of graded aggregate, so we have set prices. Mr. Williams: Okay, my last question now. When they go in there, are they going to do everything? I say everything, will they have back in there after they do this, once they go in, it’s going to be what then? This job, Jim, is going to be completed to that point; you know what I’m saying? Mr. Greene: It will be completed to that point. Mr. Williams: To that point. Mr. Greene: With graded aggregate but it will not be asphalt. Mr. Williams: Would not be asphalt? Mr. Greene: No, sir. Mr. Williams: What about pipes? Mr. Greene: They would have to take care of the drainage, because if we don’t do the drainage, we can’t build the road. 4 Mr. Williams: I just wanted to make sure now that we are not talking about going in there and cutting a road and we cut the road in there and say I want it to be clear that everything but asphalt will be done; right? Mr. Greene: That is correct. Mr. Greene: For this 300 linear feet. Mr. Williams: Yeah, right. For that. Okay. That’s all I got. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Any other questions or concerns? Discussion? Now for my purpose, would you read back the motion? Mr. Wall: Right now, we do not have the not to exceed in there unless Mr. Beard -- Mr. Beard: I’m willing to go with the not to exceed with the $80,000. Just one more question. This graded aggregate. Explain that to me. Mr. Greene: That’s a crush and run type of material, which [inaudible] hard and heavy as asphalt. It is our recommendation we not asphalt that one section until the whole road is ready to be done. Mr. Beard: Okay. That’s good. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Boyles and then Mr. Hankerson. Mr. Boyles: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Mr. Greene, does this affect other folks, too? I mean there can be other home sites added on this road, too. Are we opening it up? Mr. Greene: This road on the road paving list. However, it is not scheduled -- I can’t tell you the exact schedule of when it is done, but the road is scheduled to be extended. There is only one block of Orange Avenue that was actually developed. But we have right of way. Existing right of way. Six foot right of way in both areas off of Scott Street. But it is on the dirt road paving list, and our instructions for the department is I know that Ms. Smith and pre-construction is working on a program whereby we can go ahead and complete all of these streets in conjunction with the water and sewerage that Utilities is working on. But this would be a major project, but that is down the road. This will just allow, only actually allow two property owners on either side of the road if they were interested, to go ahead and build. Mr. Norris is the only one that has approached us, wanting to build. Mr. Boyles: That’s good. Thank you. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Hankerson? 5 Mr. Hankerson: My question is I heard you say that -- about the asphalt, the repaving. When is the repaving scheduled? Is it -- how long do you think it’s going to take? Mr. Greene: We wouldn’t have to place the asphalt down until we did the entire road. Mr. Hankerson: I’m saying when is? Mr. Greene: It’s at least one year, if not two years off, to go ahead and do the entire road. As I say, we are working on a plan whereby we can bring all of the streets as a separate project in Bel Air Estates forward to the Commission in conjunction with the Utilities Department. Mr. Hankerson: But wouldn’t we think that this homeowner would be expecting that that driveway would be asphalt when he’s building his home there and he’s coming in a crush and run driveway? What’s the significant difference in going ahead, since we’ve got to pay this kind of money to satisfy this customer, to go ahead and give him an asphalt driveway? Mr. Greene: If we paved -- well, it’s actually a road, now. It’s not a driveway. It’s a road. Mr. Hankerson: Road. Mr. Greene: It’s extending the actual road. It’s not a driveway down to his property. This is a road. But if we go ahead and put asphalt down now, the problem we run into is once we do go in there with a contractor with the heavy equipment to do the rest of the road, they are going to tear that up. Tear the asphalt up. Mr. Hankerson: Okay. My other question, I guess, is to the Administrator. Seems though it was a first decision to use Blair and them Mabus. What’s -- I’m looking at the lowest bid here, then what’s the difference there why we had a substitute motion, not to accept the lowest but the second one [inaudible]? What’s that? Mr. Greene: As I explained earlier, Blair -- once we reviewed their estimated prices -- keep in my again, this is not bid. Mr. Hankerson: [inaudible] estimate, right? Mr. Greene: Yes, sir. But if you’ll see the paragraph just below that, when it was reviewed they failed to include $2,850 for backfill material in their estimate. So that actually puts their estimated price above Mabus. Mr. Hankerson: Did they know that they were supposed to include that? 6 Mr. Greene: Yes, sir. Mr. Kolb: Mr. Mayor Pro Tem? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Yes, sir? Mr. Kolb: If I just may add to the discussion, this was not a bid. These were only estimates. So they were not filed by any bid requirements. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Beard? Mr. Beard: I’m going to make that motion, Jim, if it’s -- where are we now, cause we need to move forward? Mr. Wall: We have a motion and a second [inaudible] on the floor. Is there any objection to just [inaudible] one motion [inaudible] confused about the motion? If not, both of those can be withdrawn and we’d have one that [inaudible]. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: No objections? No objections. Mr. Mays: [inaudible]. Mr. Bridges: I can amend my motion. Jim, if I just amend my motion that we go with the low bid and up to $80,000, maximum of $80,000. Mr. Kolb: If you want a motion, the last page, the last paragraph, the word it off that. Approve a change order actually. Mr. Bridges: If I can -- you are going to have to draw the motion off the floor. I mean -- this is a completely different motion. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Is there any objection with withdrawing both motions off the floor [inaudible]? Okay, hearing none, both motions are off the floor. Mr. Bridges: I make the motion that we authorize a change order in the amount not to exceed $80,000 with an existing contractor and that we be authorized to proceed with this work without the normal bid process in order to expedite. Mr. Cheek: Second. Mr. Beard: You mean the contractor would be Blair? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mabus Brothers. Mr. Beard: Could be whichever. 7 Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Okay. All right. We have a motion and a second on the floor. Any further discussions? Hearing none, all in favor the motion, please signify by the sign of voting. Mr. Williams abstains. Motion carries 8-1. Mr. Hankerson: [inaudible] put in the history for future reference that we did [inaudible] taking two motions off the floor. It may come up in my second term. (Laughter) Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Next item, please. The Clerk: OTHER BUSINESS: 46. Discussion Commission’s Retreat scheduled for November 8-9, 2002. (Requested by Commissioner Shepard) Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: That’s from Mr. Shepard, who asked that that be put on. Is Mr. Shepard coming in today? The Clerk: I don’t know. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: No one called? The Clerk: Belinda had checked with him but I don’t know what was the outcome. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Let’s just hold this for a few minutes and go to the next item. The Clerk: ATTORNEY: 47. Receive as information exercise of option by H.W.S. Baseball, LLC d/b/a Augusta Green Jackets Baseball Club to exercise the lease extension option. Mr. Wall: I placed this on the agenda since I received a letter, as well as the Mayor and the Administrator. Under the existing lease agreement that we have for Lake Olmstead Stadium, they had to exercise the lease extension by the end of September and they have done that, and this is simply to put it as a part of the record. They ask you to receive it as information. Mr. Cheek: I so move. 8 Mr. Boyles: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion and second on the floor. Any discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion please signify by the sign of voting. Motion carries 9-0. Mr. Wall: And I would request, we’re ready for the next agenda item, a legal meeting to discuss personnel, real estate and litigation matters, or as many of those as we have an opportunity to talk about in legal session. 48. LEGAL MEETING. ?? Personnel ?? Real estate ?? Litigation matters Mr. Kuhlke: I so move. Mr. Bridges: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion and second to go into legal. All in favor, please -- Mr. Mays: Just one question. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Mays? Mr. Mays: Does that mean you are putting a time limit on it, Jim? Mr. Wall: Well, as I understand it from the last meeting, y’all had indicated that you wanted to start committees at 12:30, and so I’m assuming that that’s still the desire that [inaudible] 12:30 or [inaudible] last two items. Mr. Mays: That was my reason, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, for asking, because the first committee that we normally start with probably contains more [inaudible] type of thing, and that’s why I made that observance last week, that we didn’t need to get started with that at 1 or 1:30 [inaudible] 12:30 so I’m just asking the question [inaudible] time limit we need to come out. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: No further discussion? All in favor of the motion, please signify by the sign of voting. Motion carries 9-0. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: We’ll now adjourn to legal. 9 [LEGAL MEETING] Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: We’ll call our Commission meeting back to order. 49. Motion to approve authorization for the Mayor to execute affidavit of compliance with Georgia’s Open Meetings Act. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Wall? Mr. Wall: Ask that you approve execution of the closed meeting affidavit. Mr. Kuhlke: I so move. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion on the floor. A second? We have a motion on the floor. Mr. Mays: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion and second on the floor. Any discussion on signing the affidavit? Hearing none, I will now sign the affidavit. Motion carries 9-0. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Wall? Your meeting. Mr. Wall: The next item is item number 50. 50. Discuss Clerk’s compensation. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Beard? Mr. Beard: Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, I move that we move the Clerk’s salary to $67,000 for the remainder of this year and once the compensation is in there, we look at it again. Mr. Williams: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion and second on the floor. Any discussion? Mr. Williams? Mr. Williams: Yes, sir, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem. I’d like to make a substitute motion. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: A substitute motion? Mr. Williams: Yes, thank you. I was waiting to hear you say that. 10 Mr. Williams: I’d like to make a substitute motion that we move to raise the Clerk’s salary to $69,000. Mr. Colclough: I’ll second that. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Any discussion? Hearing none, we’ll now vote on the substitute motion. All in favor of the substitute motion, please signify by the sign of voting. (Vote on substitute motion) Mr. Bridges, Mr. Boyles and Mr. Kuhlke vote No. Mr. Shepard out. Motion carries 6-3. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Next item? Mr. Wall: 51. Discuss Administrator’s compensation. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Beard? Mr. Beard: I’m going to move that we approve the Administrator’s salary to $2,187.50 for the rest of 2002. Mr. Cheek: Second. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Motion and second on the floor. Any discussion? Mr. Hankerson? Mr. Hankerson: Mr. Administrator, are you pleased with that? Mr. Kolb: Yes, sir. Thank you. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Okay. No further discussion? All in favor of the motion, please signify by the sign of voting. Mr. Williams abstains. Mr. Shepard out. Motion carries 8-0. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Wall? Mr. Wall: I would ask that you recess the meeting until later this afternoon so that we can talk about the remaining things, items that I had to discuss in legal session. 11 Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: All in favor of recessing the meeting until later this afternoon, please signify by the sign of voting. Mr. Mays: Just a point of clarification. Can you put an indefinite time to resume? Because what I’m looking at in reality in that if you do not have a quorum it will not take place this afternoon, and so can it be suspended until you decide to put one back together? [inaudible] just to get a bunch together [inaudible]. I mean I’m willing to stay, but I mean you’ve got a hearing that some people are going to have to be at this evening. I mean there is just a whole lot of stuff here that’s got jumbled up on one day. [inaudible] meeting this morning, committee meeting, this meeting, another meeting this evening, somewhere the time frame is just going to run out. That’s the only thing I’m saying, just from a technical standpoint, [inaudible] this afternoon knowing that you are going to be down to four or five people or six people in here. I’m just throwing that question our there. I’ll vote for it. I don’t have no problem, but I’m just being realistically honest. Mr. Wall: Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, may I inquire, [inaudible] other than the four members that are on the Engineering Services Committee, which consists of Mr. Cheek, Mr. Colclough, Mr. Mays and Mr. Boyles, are y’all in a position to stay this afternoon, assuming that we would leave no later than six o’clock so that everybody could get to the public hearing tonight, assuming the last committee meeting is over with [inaudible] or do y’all want to adjourn and put another meeting together at a future time? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Cheek? Mr. Cheek: We should not have a problem completing our committee in a timely manner if everyone will look through and try to form a consent agenda. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Mr. Hankerson? Mr. Hankerson: Could we just get a commitment of those that will stay? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: How many people are willing to stay after the meeting? Mr. Beard: Until when? Six o’clock? Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Till six o’clock. One, two, three, four, five. I don’t think we have enough. Okay. Let’s just take that motion off the floor and we’ll just adjourn. Is there any other business to come before this Commission today? Mr. Bridges: I have one other piece. Could I have, and I don’t think I mentioned this before, but let the record show that I voted No on Sunday sales. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem: Gentlemen, since we are already here, we will have our committee meetings in the Chamber and then as we rotate through, you can [inaudible]. [MEETING ADJOURNED] 12 Lena J. Bonner Clerk of Commission CERTIFICATION: I, Lena J. Bonner, Clerk of Commission, hereby certify that the above is a true and correct copy of a continuation of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of Augusta Richmond County held on October 7, 2002. Clerk of Commission 13