The Carroll City Council voted last night (Monday) to put the planned improvements at Merchants Park on hold until at least next spring after bids for the work came in significantly over the design firm’s initial estimate. As part of the city’s effort to keep the Class 1A and 2A state baseball tournaments in Carroll, officials have identified just over $900,000 in work at the historic park. The project has been separated out into individual sections for the city council to approve as funding becomes available. According to Parks and Recreation Director Chad Tiemeyer, the first piece up for consideration was new bleachers and safety netting.
The initial estimate from Shive-Hattery, Inc. estimated the cost for this portion of the project at $288,075, $250,500 for the base bid with a 15 percent contingency. Tiemeyer says the other section on the docket last night was for work on the Merchants Park dugouts.
Shive-Hattery’s estimate for this section was $65,550, $57,000 for the base bid with a 15 percent contingency. Bids for these projects were opened earlier this month, and both came in well over the initial estimate. The low bid from Minturn Construction for the netting and bleachers was nearly $100,000 over estimate at $386,900. The low bid for the dugout was nearly three times the original estimate at $192,800. Ward 3 Councilman Kyle Bauer questions how the estimates could be off by such a wide margin.
Due to the nature of the bids, Tiemeyer recommended the council reject the current bids to allow staff to explore cost-saving measures and the council agreed. He suggested delaying the project would also allow them to pursue additional grant opportunities to help fund the projects. Tiemeyer anticipates the Merchants Park improvements will likely go back out for bid in spring 2024.
