Site work for a playground / park / athletic field in Ottumwa, Iowa. Design plans call for site work for a playground / park / athletic field.

https://ktvo.com/news/local/city-moving-forward-with-phase-1-of-tennis-complex-project# OTTUMWA, Iowa -- Greater Ottumwa Park could soon see some upgrades. The City of Ottumwa is moving forward with creating a design for a tennis complex in Sycamore Park. In a meeting earlier this week, Community Development Director Zach Simonson spoke with council members. "The resolution for this consideration would approve an agreement with Design Workshop to create construction documents for Greater Ottumwa Park Phase 1 tennis facility," Simonson said. The project is still in its beginning stages, this construction design is just the first step. It will include 12 courts, fencing, netting, lighting, stands and support buildings. The fee for this design will come out to $196,000. The city is now allocating $750,000 for this project and Ottumwa Schools has pledged $750,000. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.ottumwacourier.com/news/strip-center-agreement-comes-before-council/article_368ff0a6-b428-11ec-8a7f-6b1e1a727a7e.html The city will set a public hearing for April to approve the plans, specifications and estimated cost for the new shower house and office project in the campground at Greater Ottumwa Park. The project has been long overdue, and American Rescue Plan Act funding was set aside to aid in some of the costs. It's anticipated the total cost of the project to be about $616,000, and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. ______________________________________________________________ https://www.ottumwacourier.com/news/intertwined-issues-await-city-council/article_f408bb8e-a3ae-11ec-862b-53bab2e8e0af.html Intertwined issues await city council OTTUMWA -- They all go hand in hand: the budget, American Rescue Plan Act funding and bonding for capital improvement projects over the next couple years. All of them will be coming before the Ottumwa City Council in the next few weeks, starting Tuesday, when the council will hold a public hearing to adopt its fiscal year 2023 budget during its regular meeting at City Hall. While it's anticipated the property tax rate for residents will dip by $1 to $21.22 per $1,000 of assessed value, that isn't the only other number that will help guide the city into future budget cycles. The other number is $4.29, or the amount the city wants to keep as a debt service levy to help fund projects in the near term, particularly through bonding. Funding the projects The council and staff discussed bonding for CIP Thursday during a work session with Tim Oswald of Piper Sandler, which handles much of the investment banking for the city. Oswald told the city, which has expressed interest in $8 million for CIP in the next two fiscal years, that the city should have at least $4 million per year in bonds for projects. "The plan that we had developed maybe a year and a half ago was that you would sell a bond for capital in one year, and pay it off the next year," Oswald said, noting the city has bonds it took out in 2016 and won't finish paying until fiscal year 2026. "We want to keep the interest costs at a minimum, keep the professional fees to a minimum and make it as efficient as we possibly can." However, the city has the ability to pay off bonds without using property taxes to do so, namely in the form of tax-increment financing revenue and local option sales tax. The projects themselves The city has a long list of CIP in fiscal years 2023 and 2024 at the department level, including fleet replacement, public works projects, planning and parks. However, some of those projects could be paid for with either bonding or ARPA funds, potentially lowering the amount of bonding based on what projects will be paid by what method. City Administrator Philip Rath said the HVAC improvements to City Hall could be covered by the ARPA funds, but the potential $5.2 million restoration of the building couldn't "because there aren't enough ARPA funds to cover both." "Essentially Tim would need to know what is the total dollar amount we're moving forward with, and if there are certain projects we're not going to include in the bond request," Rath said. "So if we're going to say some of these we're not going to bond for, that we're going to use the recovery plan act, then that would be removed from the bond and give him a different number. "In a way it's the whole chicken and egg, but one does hold the other's hand." The ARPA avenue The city has $1.8 million in ARPA funding coming this year and next year, but must make a decision on how to spend the first allotment of money by the end of the month, likely at a work session March 22. Mary Margaret Butler will ask the council at Tuesday's meeting to consider ARPA funds for the Whatsoever You Do women's and children's shelter. Projects that likely will be paid for with at least some ARPA funds are the HVAC system and the shower house project in Ottumwa Park, which the city also wants to use $560,000 to recover lost revenue from the pandemic. Rath did say that the capital improvement projects for the next two years will make a difference for the city. "A little over $3 million, or 38% of the total request, is reinvestment back into the community," he said of various development projects. "A lot of that is replacement of infrastructure of buildings, of vehicles. But 38% of that is putting it right back into the community to help build the values to and lower our level of taxes overall." Moving forward Oswald said the city should approve the bonding "for your first meeting in April" and sell the bonds either in mid to late April or early May. "I want to look at who else is selling bonds so that we're not trying to get in the market and compete with someone selling similar bonds to us," he said. "We want to get the bond interest rates locked up and have money in your hands before the close of the fiscal year (June 30)." ______________________________________________ As of January 12, 2022, a design engineer has been selected. No firm timeline has been established for the construction *The previous solicitation is listed below for reference The City of Ottumwa seeks qualified landscape architects, architects and engineers to develop a master plan for Greater Ottumwa Park and the surrounding recreation and amenities. Timetable o August 4, 2021: RFQ Released. o August 16, 2021 4:30PM CDT: Email Questions Due to Zach Simonson. o August 18, 2021 5:30PM CDT: City Hall Meeting for Prospective Respondents. All questions emailed in advance will be answered at this meeting. Virtual participation will be available for this meeting using Microsoft Teams. All prospective respondents will be able to ask questions at this meeting. o August 20, 2021 4:30PM CDT: Complete list of questions and answers from the meeting and received by email will be sent to prospective respondents and attached to the RFQ posting on the City website. o September 10, 2021 4:30PM CDT: RFQ responses due. o September 10-17, 2021: RFQ responses evaluated. Evaluation committee may schedule interviews with some or all respondents. o September 17, 2021: Evaluation committee will announce selection. o September 21, 2021: City Council will consider agreement with selected firm or team As of November 28, 2022, no new information available