The idea of the committee was supported by the council at previous meetings and, if created, would comprise 11 individuals. Each council member will appoint one individual, and the council as a whole will appoint four.
Deputy City Manager Micah Grau, Project Manager Kenny Crawford and Public Works Director Mike Beggs held a workshop on the implementation of the $89.6 million 2021 bond package, which outlines the purpose of the ad hoc committee, at a regular City Council meeting Dec.7.
“What a bond oversight committee would do, in turn, would be to provide exactly what it says: oversight, management, advice to the City Council and down to staff on the implementation of the projects,” Grau said.
He added the committee could add a layer of transparency to the public and allow for dedicated time to work on complex projects. Additionally, city staff has the option to appoint a bond manager for propositions A and B or one for each.
A lesson learned from the implementation of the 2014 bond was that while lumping together different bond packages with one firm resulted in more consolidated work, there were only so many hours in one day that the firm could put toward the projects, Grau said.
Though the 2014 and 2021 bonds differ, Crawford said, city staff gleaned a lot of information on how to carry out the work for the propositions.
Council Member Evan Ture recounted the 2014 bond process and said one of the main frustrations was though the city was able to save money on some projects, this time around, staff needs to pay attention to what those savings will cost in time.
“We’re all pained by 2014 bonds having still some asterisks, still being finished up,” Ture said. “Save some money, but you might extend some timelines. It’s important to be aware when we make those decisions.”
Mayor Lee Urbanovsky also added the was shocked at the time it took to get things done after the 2014 bond was approved by voters.
“We passed the [2014] bond on Tuesday night. On Wednesday, I had five different people call me and [ask], ‘When are you going to do the things they voted for the night before?’” Urbanovsky said. “Setting expectations is so critical.”
Ultimately, Grau said staff will plan out six months at a time for the 2021 bond implementation. Appointments will be made for the committee so they can begin meeting in February. Initial groupings of projects and solicitations for designs will begin in March with a start date in May.
