01-24-2011 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 24, 2011 7:00 o'clock p.m. (8. OLD CRYSTAL BAYROAD RECONSTRUCTION PLAN UPDATE, Continued) Franchot pointed out the School District will be responsible for constructing the west side bike path. Kellogg noted the School District will also be making some improvements on the school grounds themselves in conjunction with this project. McMillan stated the main two issues for the City Council to decide tonight is the width of the median and the amount of money they would like to spend on this portion of the project. McMillan asked whether there are any limitations on the MSA money the City would receive. Kellogg indicated there are limitations on the MSA money. The City is able to spend as much money on landscaping as they would like, but the reimbursement would be limited to five percent annually of what the City's allotment is. If the City receives $200,000 in MSA money, the City would be reimbursed $12,500 annually. The majority of the street improvement costs are state aid eligible and 100 percent reimbursable. Kellogg indicated there is a limit on the amount of reimbursement for costs associated with landscaping. Franchot asked how much this project would cost Orono as opposed to money the City would receive from other sources. • Kellogg stated that was covered in the feasibility study under option two. As it relates to costs, the sanitary sewer was estimated to be $184,000, which would consist of funds from the sanitary sewer fund. The water main was estimated at approximately $200,000, which would come from the water main fund, and the storm sewer was estimated at $355,000, which would be partially eligible for state aid. The rest would need to come from the storm water utility fund. The street improvements identified in the feasibility report were $2.3 million and did not include any landscaping. The bond sale for this project was $1.6 million. Loftus asked for clarification on the cap that the City is allowed to maintain. Kellogg stated the City would be penalized if they keep more than $1.5 million or five times the City's annual state aid allotment. Printup asked if the project has to be completed by the end of the year in order to receive the state aid. Kellogg stated the constraints on this project are more time constraints given the school's schedule and the limited amount of time they have to complete the project. Franchot commented during the course of the discussion over the past few months, he has been impressed by the contributions of the various parties and the plan that has been arrived at. Franchot stated in his opinion it would be a serious mistake to treat the landscaping as cheaply as possible and that a concrete median would not be in keeping with Orono's rural character and would add to the hardcover in the area. Franchot stated in his view there needs to be some type of barrier in the median to discourage pedestrian • crossings at undesired locations and that the basic concept that has been presented tonight is attractive and Page 9 of 15