City considering change orders for indoor aquatics center

Posted on July 5, 2022 by Jenn Rowell

City staff are recommending $91,029.58 worth of changes to the new indoor aquatics and recreation center currently under construction in Lions Park.

During their July 5 meeting, commissioners will consider a second change order to the $18 million contract.

Those changes include:

plan review fee, city’s responsibility: $45,516.32
permit review, civil changes: $10,069
structural and plumbing revisions per city plan review: $16,010.29
architectural, plumbing and mechanical changes per city request: ($2,247.05)
steel joist changes at gym: $1,837.15
increase second floor beam size: $8,548.64
replace 659 cubic yards of structural fill with three-quarter inch washed gravel under the pools: $11,295.23

In November 2021, commissioners awarded a $18.3 million contract to Swank Construction.

In March, commissioners approved a change order that reduced the cost by $244,655 by changing materials.

The new indoor aquatics and recreations center is 45,000 square feet of new construction that will include a recreation pool, lap pool, gym, fitness center, walking track, multipurpose room, party room, locker rooms, restrooms, child watch area, lobby, offices, storage and mechanical rooms at 900 29th St. S. in a potion of Lions Park.

The city received a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense for the project that was identified in the 2016 Park and Recreation Master Plan. The city will match that with $10 million through the sale of bonds by the park district.

Staff is also recommending a $56,450 amendment to the design agreement with LPW Architecture/TD&H Engineering for the project.

The amendment includes:

civil stormwater redesign: $7,000
compaction testing, up to 50 trips: $15,000
concrete testing, up to 50 tests $15,000
asphalt laboratory testing $2,000
asphalt field compaction testing: $6,000
asphalt mix verification and cores $5,000
15 percent contingency $6,450

Services will be billed on a time-and-materials basis so that the city receives any potential savings associated with efficiencies during construction that don’t require as much testing as assumed, according to the staff report.

After the project was bid, the design team, contractor and city changed some items to lower the cost, including redesigning the stormwater drainage and treatment portion. That saved about $40,000 and was credited to the first change order that lowered the costs. This change order covers TD&H’s extra design services to make the changes to the drawings, according to staff.

TD&H’s original project design fees included testing materials in the building but not the site work. Initially, it was planned that those fees would be the contractor’s responsibility, but during bidding “it was decided that it would be best to keep testing as part of the owner’s responsibility to avoid any conflict of interest,” according to the staff report.

For more background on the new indoor aquatics and recreation center, read our previous coverage:

City reduces cost for aquatic center construction; approves fundraising agreement

City reduces construction contract cost for aquatic center

City staff recommending $18.43 million contract for new aquatic center

City postpones decision on aquatic center construction contract

Staff asking commission to postpone award of aquatic center contract for more review time

City breaks ground on indoor aquatics, recreation center

City considering water main contract for aquatic center on Aug. 17

DoD finds no violation in city process for aquatic center

City budget approved; work on aquatics center continuing

Commissioners approve permit, aggregation and vacating streets for aquatics center

Commission holding public hearings on portions of aquatic center project during May 18 meeting