Prairie du Chien council approves financing plan for library expansion
The base of the river wall on St. Feriole Island is deteriorating, and a sinkhole along the pathway was found by the mayor a few weeks ago. The sinkhole has since been fixed, but the city is now considering what kind of a major overhaul can be done to repair the problems and improve the riverfront for the future.
By Correne Martin
A $2.9 million financing plan for expanding the Prairie du Chien Memorial Library was given consent by a unanimous common council vote Tuesday night—about $1.45 million of which the city will contribute, leaving the other half to be raised through a capital campaign. Bids are expected to be let for the project in late 2016, at which time a more accurate project cost will be determined.
Tuesday night’s council action permits city staff to negotiate a capital campaign contract with the Sweeney Group. That contract is estimated to cost between $3,000 and $4,000 per month for 14 months (or $56,000 max) for consulting and liaison services between the city and potential donors. The expense would likely come from the city’s contingency fund. The official agreement will come back for council approval within one month.
Plans to fund the project, according to City Administrator Aaron Kramer, involve borrowing the full amount in early 2017 on a four-year note with interest-only payments and a balloon note due in 2021. During that time, donations collected via the capital campaign will be kept in a segregated escrow account. In 2021, the balloon payment would be refinanced with the principal reduced by two sources: 1) The funds escrowed from the capital campaign, and 2) Any funds contributed from the excess money resulting from the closure of TIF 6 (Cabela’s TIF). The debt at that point would be issued as a 20-year bond, with a possible call date for early payoff if a large donation were received during the payback period.
“We’re already getting donations. It’s not a lot but we are getting them,” Kramer pointed out. “This financing plan is very similar to the Hoffman Hall model. In that case, we’ve had a 0 percent default rate on donations.”
“So far, the money spent (in research and analysis) has come from the existing library budget. You’re not paying any more on your tax bill,” he added.
The council shared a number of questions as well as support for the proposed 12,000-square-foot expansion.
Alderman Mike “Stubby” Jones asked if the city and library board had considered relocating the library and whether that would be a cheaper option.
Kramer explained that all existing city-owned buildings and vacant land had been considered and that the cost would be about $4-5 million to build from scratch. He also noted that the existing library structure is in sound shape, while the interior is what needs attention.
New Council President Jean Titlbach spoke at length about the importance of an updated library. First, she noted that she once questioned the need for a “new” library but then was recruited to be on the expansion project steering committee and has since changed her tune.
“It’s not just books. It’s a place where you learn and find information,” she stated. “It’s for people who need the Internet. It’s a place to study together when school is closed and there’s no other public facility to do so. It’s a place to have meetings, webinars and gather for historical archiving/genealogy. Some people are going to say they’re not going to use Hoffman Hall or the boat landings or the parks, but I think we need to supply these things for a wide range of people in our community.”
Alderman Ron Leys agreed and pointed out that a more modern library is something that attracts new residents and retains current ones.
Kramer reminded the council that it gave initial commitment to the project last year with an approved resolution, but the contract with Sweeney Group would be the council’s first time spending money on the project itself. By June, the exact cost of the company’s consulting services will be known.
River wall deteriorating
A few weeks ago, Mayor Dave Hemmer was walking on the riverfront pathway at Lawler Park on St. Feriole Island when he noticed a sinkhole developing. He immediately notified city staff and the hole was filled in and made safe for the public. However, the base of the river wall is also deteriorating.
Before discussing the need to develop short- and long-term plans for more permanent fixes, Hemmer assured the council that there is no safety issue at this time.
“The wall isn’t in danger of falling into the river tomorrow,” he said.
But it’s become apparent that the river wall is in need of a major upgrade. Kramer said the last time such was done was in 2004.
“With the traffic and usage continuing to increase, and the [American Queen cruise boat] coming in August, we need to start looking at filtering money into the budget toward fixing the problem,” he said.
Admitting that the city isn’t sure what the precise solution will be, Kramer suggested putting out a vague request for proposals (RFPs) asking contractors to provide possible solutions and costs to repair and upgrade the river wall. While that’s being considered, he suggested the council also think about overhauling the entire riverfront to include improvements further north near the Fisher Street boat landing, the beach and the Villa Louis boat landing.
“We have no idea what this is going to cost, but we’re asking if we should stop at the river wall or go north while we’re at it,” Kramer stated.
The council voted to send the issue to the public works committee, which will draw up RFPs for laying out a plan.
SRTS pedestrian and bike path delayed
A bid to construct a Safe Routes to School (SRTS) pedestrian/bike path on portions of Dousman and Wells Streets and Campion Boulevard, a project intended for this summer, was rejected by the council because it came in $98,000 over budget at $294,019. The bid exceeded the $192,000 in funds remaining under the SRTS grant the city received in 2007.
“Ultimately, this path would tie into Marquette Road to create a six-mile bike trail that would be very nice for a city of our size,” Kramer said. “But the project must be completed by June of 2016 or we owe the state.”
By rejecting the bid, the council will now wait for Kramer and Bart Nies, of Delta 3 Engineering, to determine which parts of the project could be performed by city staff (to save money) and then submit a new scope of the plan to the state for approval. This option means the project could still be rebid later this year or in early 2016 and possibly completed by the deadline.
Other business
The council also:
•approved the sale of 208 S. Marquette Road to David Welter for $17,400, and the sale of the 100 block of South Marquette, excluding the 9,000-square-foot pocket park at the corner of Marquette and Blackhawk, to Bridger Acquisitions for $101,500. Redevelopment of those parcels is anticipated.
According to City Planner Garth Frable, the property included leftover remnants from the 2014 Marquette Road project. “In some cases, we only wanted one-third but were required to buy the whole parcel if the property owner wanted to sell,” he said.
After a public hearing Tuesday night, at which no citizens appeared, the council determined no public need for the land.
•approved a resolution vacating Rice Street near the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad property along the Highway 18 Bypass. The Wisconsin DOT has done a safety analysis at the Rice Street/bypass intersection and the city has received no objections to this.
•awarded a bid to Iverson Construction, of Kieler, for $64,775 to grind and overlay 9th Street, from Parish to Wells. Since $100,000 was allocated for this project, the council also agreed to expand the work to include Broadway Street, from Marquette to 10th Street. Kramer said these streets do not need any major utility work and that the project will simply include grinding down the existing roadway and replacing it with new pavement, much extending the life of the streets.
•divided the proceeds of the Block 43 sale ($135,468) as follows: general fund—$25,000, city redevelopment authority—$12,500, and downtown revolving loan fund—$97,968. Block 43 was sold to Nelson True Value for construction of its new facility.
Kramer pointed out that there is about $250,000 in the downtown revolving loan fund currently, which is used to attract new businesses and help existing businesses grow. The city loan committee will meet May 12 to review documents and procedures and talk about publicizing the availability of funds.
