CCMIN050702 - Laserfiche WebLink

suggested the City downsize the design of the park and leave the funding for the Veterans' Building as is. He believed the Veterans' History project will benefit the entire Tri-Valley. He said the veterans organization does a lot for the community and cited several projects. He said he has a lot of experience in estimating costs of projects and felt the City's estimate for the Veterans' Building was inaccurate. Even though the funds will be replaced, he did not understand why the City chose to take money from the Veterans' Building fund and suggested the City use funding from the Civic Arts programs. He believed the Veterans' Building project was just as deserving as the Val Vista Park. Larry Jackson, 4106 West Las Positas, said it seems like the staff continues to "rob Peter to pay Paul." He believed the plans for Val Vista have been around for years and because it was not built the cost has gone up. In 1988, the Golf Course Committee had a plan for a $5 million golf course. Now the estimate is $30 million and it still may never be built. The Veterans' Building was built in honor of veterans who died in World War I and because of neglect, it is in bad condition. Even so, it is still one of the most active buildings in the City. Every weekend something is happening in that building and he listed numerous events. It definitely needs to be upgraded. If the staff"robs Peter to pay Paul" to fix the park, why not do that to fix the Veterans' Building? If you can only spend $1.5 million to get the building started, then do it. If it means the neighborhood around Val Vista has to suffer through two phases of construction, then so be it. He was concerned that three years from now, the veterans will still be waiting to get the building fixed. The $3 million estimate could be up to $6 million. If Council acts soon, it will save money. Ms. McKeehan indicated there is an ongoing process. As projects are envisioned, priorities are set for them by the Parks and Recreation Commission. Time is spent reviewing the details of the vision for a project and cost estimates are then done. There is an ongoing policy to finish a project before another is commenced. As the Capital Improvement Program budget is set, only the current year is funded and ongoing years are prioritized. The decision was made by the Parks and Recreation Commission, which is consistent with the existing policy, to finish the Val Vista Park and to take funds from a project that had not been started. The priorities for the next projects in line, including the Veterans' Hall, would be set. You could call that "robbing Peter to pay Paul" but in fact, staff is setting prior/ties and sticking to them to finish the projects. Ms. Michelotti pointed out that renovation of the Veterans' Hall is one of the highest prior/ties of the Council. She assured the audience that it would stay a highest priority. Mr. Wolfe agreed with Ms. Michelotti. The Parks and Recreation Commission's three highest priorities now are Val Vista Park, the Alviso Adobe project, and the Veterans' Memorial Building. He agreed the Task Force and a consultant designed a potential master plan for the Vets' Hall. Staff has allocated $1.2 million to start a fund until the master plan determines the actual improvements needed for the building. The projected cost estimate was $3 million, which is higher than expected. A good part of that is contingency funds for work the consultant thought may need to be done in terms of HVAC systems, electrical, ADA compliance, etc. Staff has contracted with a design firm to perform a peer review and provide a second opinion on the cost estimates. Once that is in hand, staff will come before Council and the Commission to approve a master plan. In the same manner as done for Val Vista, staffwill commence increasing reserve Pleasanton City Council 5 05/07/02 Minutes