Nebraska City council backs Memorial Building contract changes

(Nebraska City) -- Plans for renovating a historical Nebraska City structure are being adjusted.

At its regular meeting Monday evening, the Nebraska City City Council approved an amendment to two architect professional services agreements with Leo A. Daly for projects associated with the Veterans Memorial Building's renovation. Funding for the project comes from Community Development Block Grant dollars awarded to the city in 2019. Speaking on KMA's "Morning Line" program Tuesday morning, Nebraska City Administrator Grayson Path says the first agreement entailed design of a three-phase electrical service for the structure. Path says plans for electrical renovations were amended to accommodate numerous changes to the building.

"We came to the realization that for an elevator, HVAC--all of the different pieces of the project, and the puzzle--we'd like to upgrade from a single phase to three phases," said Path. "That would better serve an elevator, better serve the HVAC system, better serve all the needs of the kitchen area, overall--just better serve the building, as well."

Path says the electrical upgrades include a new transformer outside the building, as well as a new control panel inside.

"Our existing electrical panel is 1983, or older," he said. "So, it's quite aged for electrical use. So, we're looking at upgrading that system. Of course, there's just different pieces running through the building, as well."

The electrical system's contract amendment totals more than $5,600. The second amendment entails removal of the design of the exterior entrance ramps. Path says a review of the existing plans determined the ramp is no longer necessary.

"When we first went after the CDBG funds," said Path, "we kind of envisioned a new ADA ramp on the building. We had two existing ramps, but we thought a third one might be more up to code, and so forth. Then, we also envisioned a four-step elevator in the building. But after working with our architect, looking at the existing ramps, looking at what a new ramp would do in terms of cost, length, the slope and the extension of the sidewalk on the new building, we realized a new ramp cannot work with the new building."

Another change involves switching from a four-stop to three-stop elevator. The elevator amendment entails a reduction of more than $2,800 to the contract cost. Plans call for the city to receive a final design on the project this summer, with a bidletting expected for later this year. You can hear the full interview with Grayson Path on our "Morning Line" page at kmaland.com.

No Comments Yet.

Leave a comment