City Council receives community center update
By Kathy McCarty
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — City Council had an opportunity at Monday’s meeting to discuss the Community Center Task Force’s findings and report, issued in September, offering councilors several options to consider what to do next with regard to the proposed center.
City Manager Jim Bennett provided a quick summary of the Task Force’s recommendations.
“This is to see if Council has any decisions you’d like to meet and discuss after the report,” began Bennett, as he listed four options.
“The first is to accept the recommendation and proceed. The report suggests the community center should be built around 33,000 square feet, at a maximum cost of $4 million to taxpayers,” said Bennett. “Then we’d pre-bid design and get an estimate for the next phase. We’d need an architect’s rendition in order to solicit donations. We estimate $75,000 to $100,000 for that phase of the proposal.”
The cost to construct a 33,000 square foot center, according to Bennett, was estimated at $8 million — with $4 million coming from taxpayers and $4 million through donations and other sources.
“The second option is to reject this plan and consider other possibilities,” said Bennett.
The third possibility, according to Bennett, would “reject the project and repair the present structure.”
Bennett said that might be a problem in itself, since it’s been 10-15 years of deferring and “nothing’s been done” to address maintenance issues at the Haskell building on Main Street since councilors began looking at the possibility of construction a new center.
The fourth option would have the topic of a new center “deferred until a new council is seated in January 2012,” said Bennett.
Bennett councilors also had the option of rejecting some suggestions or modifying options.
“I put this on the agenda looking for some guidance on where you’d like us to go,” said Bennett.
Councilor Randy Smith asked if the $600,000 the city has already spent on purchasing property, surveys, etc., was part of the taxpayers’ $4 million. Bennett said it was in addition to that figure.
“Obviously we won’t raise $4 million from the public overnight. But we need an architectural drawing. We can’t expect to go (to donors) with a rough design and expect them to give money. We’d be dead in the water to start with,” said Council Chair Emily Smith.
Councilor Mel Hovey questioned how this would affect the mil rate.
“Coming from the taxpayers, this either raises taxes or (would require a) cut something else,” said Hovey.
Bennett said the report indicated finance options, with an approximate figure of $294,000 in annual payments over a 20-year period.
“That’s about a half mil for a debt service project,” said Bennett.
After a brief discussion, councilors voted to authorize Bennett to pursue bids from architects.
In other business, Council:
• Proclaimed November as Adoption Awareness Month;
• Amended Chapter 16 of the Land Use and Development Code, Section 12 — Retail Business Zone, and Section 28 — Downtown Retail Business Zone;
• Approved a liquor license for Presque Isle Hotel Company d/b/a The Northeastland Hotel, 436 Main St.;
• Received public comment pertaining to an article in last week’s Star-Herald that discussed proposed cuts City Manager Jim Bennett presented at councilors’ request that, if all were approved, would result in a savings of $1.5 million but would mean the reduction of services and staff that impact all departments. Brent Anderson, a member of the Planning Board, expressed concern over the proposed cuts and how they would lead to safety issues. Traci Place, business agent for Teamsters Local 340, spoke on behalf of the many city employees and union members who would be displaced, also noting safety concerns —employees working with reduced staff, especially for the fire, police and public works departments, as well as citizens. David Wyman, a resident, submitted a letter that Council Chair Emily Smith read into the record expressing Wyman’s approval to all suggested cuts in the article;
• Received public comment from Miles Williams, president of the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce, requesting the Chamber be funded at $25,000, since many of the activities the organization promotes draws business to Presque Isle and is therefore worth the investment;
• Voted 5-1 to approve a revision to meeting minutes of Oct. 17, with Councilor Don Gardner opposing, stating he believed City Clerk Bev Labbe did an accurate job in compiling the minutes and saw no need for a change;
• Approved consent agenda items;
• Approved personnel policy changes;
• Tabled discussion of the cable TV franchise until a later date;
• Discussed how Council packets are received, with Bennett suggesting the possible use of computerized tablets, citing the time and paper it would save to use electronic media for this purpose; and
• Accepted the manager’s report which requested councilor’s approve taking money from the contingency account to pay for a recent consultant’s report on streamlining service at the fire and police departments.
Prior to adjourning, Gardner indicated he’d been asked by a citizen if Bennett was still associated with the consulting firm (Eaton Peabody) that recently did a traffic study downtown.
“The consulting firm we hired — do you have any relationship with them?” asked Gardner.
“I have an affiliation with them — worked with them. That’s why you got the cost you did (for the study). I have not received any pay from them since my employ with the city of Presque Isle,” said Bennett, noting his relationship resulted in “getting the study cheaper than if we had no connection.”
Council will meet on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 5 p.m. at City Hall to hold a budget workshop.
The next regularly-scheduled Council meeting will be held on Monday, Dec. 5, at 6 p.m. at City Hall. The public is welcome and encouraged to participate. For more information, call 760-2785.
