Mayor Robert Restaino wants city lawmakers to authorize contracts worth more than $15 million for five capital projects, including a new $4 million animal shelter at Hyde Park and a proposed $8 million building at the city public works yard on New Road.
All funds for the projects would be covered using funds obtained by the city through the federal COVID-19 relief program, formally known as the American Rescue Plan.
Resolutions calling for authorization of the contract awards are scheduled to be considered by Wednesday’s city council meeting.
The list of proposed contract awards includes:
• A total of $4.179 million for work related to the conversion of an existing public works building at Hyde Park into the city’s new shelter for stray dogs. Restaino’s administration is calling for the council to complete the award of contracts for the project to Camco General Construction ($1.96 million base bid plus alternate of $2 million), Greater Niagara Mechanical, Inc. ($877,560 base bid), CIR Electric ($600,600) and J.R. Swanson ($692,400).
• A total of $8.03 million for the construction of a pre-engineered metal building at the city public works corporation yard on New Road. The administration has asked the council to award contracts as follows for the project: Walter S. Johnson Building Co. (general construction), Greater Niagara Mechanical, Inc. (HVAC), Frey Electric (Electrical) and DV Brown (plumbing).
• A total of $1.152 million to reconstruct the gazebo on Duck Island at Hyde Park. The administration is calling for the council to accept a bid for the project from Walter S. Johnson Building Co., Inc.
• A total of $1.80 million for heating and cooling system improvements at the John Duke Center on Hyde Park Boulevard. The administration has asked the council to approve a bid from Sicoli Construction Service, Inc. for the project.
• A total of $450,562 for the interior renovation of the south building at the Hyde Park Golf Dome annex. The administration is asking the council to approve a bid from Walter S. Johnson Building Co. for the project.
In addition, Restaino’s administration is asking the council to consider approval of a proposed $1.048 million change order to an existing agreement with Trautman Associates, the firm hired by the city to perform contract administration and construction inspection services for the gazebo, Duke Center, golf dome and public works building projects.
The total cost for all of the items comes to $16,041,524.
Funds would come from the city’s $57 million share of the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9 trillion federal stimulus package authorized in 2021 to help municipal governments and school districts in recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Memos for each of the items warn that failure to approve the recommendations from the administration will require the city to refund ARP dollars dedicated to the project to the U.S. Treasury. Under the program, municipalities that fail to authorize expenditure of ARP funds within timeframes set by the government must return unused dollars to the federal government.
Councilman Donta Myles, a frequent critic of the administration, said he considers that suggestion to be a “scare tactic” being deployed to ensure a majority of council members authorize the spending at the final scheduled meeting of the year.
Myles said it’s unclear to him if the administration’s plan for a new building at the public works yards is intended to replace space the department will lose as a result Hyde Park animal shelter conversion, although he said it appears to him to be the case. He noted that the total cost to the public for both projects tops $12 million, something Restaino has not acknowledged publicly.
“They didn’t go into any real detail,” Myles said. “This is just another building. This goes along with the continuous lack of transparency.”
The council meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Niagara Falls City Hall 745 Main St.