City Council expected to vote on Streetscape
By Ty Johnson
Published in News on March 4, 2012 1:50 AM
The Goldsboro City Council is expected to vote Monday on the Center Street Streetscape project, bringing an end to months of discussions and deliberations on the city's signature downtown revitalization project.
A memo on the Council agenda requiring individual action recommends awarding the contract for the project, which would renovate the 200 block of North Center Street, to Daniels & Daniels Construction Co., which submitted the lowest bid at $1,389,857.88.
If the project is approved, the city will be faced with additional costs to place utilities underground and perform other infrastructure renovations, ballooning the total to $1.9 million.
Council previously charged Finance Director Kaye Scott with exploring financing options for the project, which would need to be partially funded through a loan.
Monday won't be the first time the council has voted on the Center Street Streetscape project. When the initial bids were opened Sept. 19, the council decided to alter the project in an effort to reduce the amount of money the city would need to borrow. Initial estimates showed the city could put up about $1.129 million from street bond money and the utility fund to cover the project. The lowest, initial bid revealed would cost $1.7 million, not counting utility work. To decrease the amount the city would need to borrow, those bids were rejected and an altered project was put out for bid, resulting in the prices the council will consider Monday.
Other items to be considered for individual action Monday include the conditional use permit for an electronic gaming facility on New Hope Road and another for a convenience store at the corner of West New Hope Road and Cuyler Best Road.
The Planning Commission, at its Feb. 27 meeting, suggested denying the electronic gaming facility permit due to its proximity to another facility of the same type. Gaming businesses are not permitted within 200 feet of one another without modification to city policies and the proposed facility is 150 feet from another.
The commission also recommends approving the convenience store permit.