|
 Johnson said when the land surveys had been done, it was noted
that the Ameren utility poles were “teetering in and out” of the
right-of-way. There were more than two-dozen poles that would need
to be moved. He said the first thought and hope was that Ameren
would endure the cost of moving the poles. However, it didn’t work
out that way. He said the franchise agreement the city has with
Ameren stipulated that moving the poles will be at the expense of
the city. Johnson said Ameren had been asked what the cost would be
and had responded with an estimated $799,000.
Johnson said that moving the poles, or at least most of them, could
be avoided by shifting the entire road slightly to the north. To do
this, there would have to be some additional land purchases for the
right-of-ways, but the majority of those purchases would involve
landowners from which the city already has purchased right-of-ways.
He said it would primarily be a matter of letting these land owners
know that the city needs to take a little more property.
He said at the moment, he doesn’t know what the additional
right-of-way property will cost the city, but he is certain that it
will cost much less than moving the utility poles. His said that
even if it cost an addition $300,000, the city would still save
close to one-half million dollars.
Currently, the project is projected to cost a total of $6.8 million
to complete. Johnson said the cost could be reduced to possibly $6.5
million with this new plan. To make this change the design
engineers, Hanson Professional Services, will require an amendment
to their Scope of Work contract and an additional $79,112.20.
After Johnson had spoken, Jonie Tibbs asked for some refresher on
the road project. She wanted to know how far west the city was
responsible for the new roadway. The answer was the city will cover
the cost of the work to approximately Forest Hills Road, west of
Sysco. The county will then be responsible for the road from that
point to a point close to the Interstate-55 overpass.
Tibbs also asked if it would be four lanes, two in each direction.
Johnson said it would, and Tibbs asked why. He said traffic count
studies supported the need for two lanes from each direction to
improve the flow and safety of the road.
Kathy Horn asked if the city would then consider annexing property
along the road into the city limits. Johnson said the city had the
option to annex that part of the community with or without the road
if they chose.
Mayor Marty Neitzel asked if the plan for Fifth Street included a
bike trail. It does, Johnson said. He noted that the original plan
was for a ten-foot wide trail on one side of the road, but that may
be reduced to eight-foot with a gravel finish. Johnson also noted
that an application filed with CEDS had called for the bike trail to
be asphalt, but for now the plan was gravel.
[to top of second column] |
Todd Mourning asked about the CEDS grant, had the city heard anything. Johnson
said that grant awards for 2015 had been given, and Lincoln was not awarded. He
said the grant availability for 2016 has not been announced yet, but the city
could re-apply when the time comes. Johnson was asked who would write the grant
application. He said that for the 2015 application, he had done the writing and
was prepared to do it again for 2016 if the council wished.
Tibbs wondered how safe the gravel would be for bike riders. Johnson said that
gravel bike paths are generally accepted. He also noted that portion of the plan
for the Fifth Street Road had been written years ago, under prior city
administration. He told the council that if they were concerned about the
gravel, Hanson could be advised to amend the plan to include asphalt instead, of
course, at an added expense.
Mourning explained that a gravel bike trail is not the loose white rock that
immediately comes to mind. He said the path would be pulverized limestone, pack
tightly. He noted that such paths were hard, smooth and safe for biking.
It had been noted earlier that of the estimated $6.8 million needed for Fifth
Street, the city has accumulated $4.7 million. Michelle Bauer said that
considering the gap and the need for the improved road, she felt the road should
be the priority in this case, not the bike trail. She felt that going to the
extra expense of asphalt was not necessary. It was also noted that many times a
trail will be established with rock, then upgraded later.
At next Monday’s voting session an item on the agenda will be to amend the
contract with Hanson so that the firm may work on shifting the road slightly to
the north to avoid Ameren electric poles at an additional cost of $79,112.20.
This dollar amount is for Hanson’s design services only and has nothing to do
with the cost of the additional right-of-ways or the cost of actual road
construction.
[Nila Smith] |
