Updated Dec. 3

City Commissioners will be asked during their Dec. 3 meeting to reject bids for the front door replacement project at the Great Falls Public Library.

The library was awarded $20,000 in American Rescue Plan Act, or federal COVID relief funds, from Cascade County’s allocation in 2022.

Library officials were planning to replace the front doors as a stand alone project, but have since embarked on a master plan and capital remodel project.

Library board approves new management agreement with city

Library staff and the board put the doors project on hold as the remodel design plans were developed to avoid replacing the doors now and potentially needing to make a change for the large remodel once the funds are raised for that capital campaign.

“We did not want to waste taxpayer dollars by making a fix now and then redoing the doors in the near future,” Library Director Susie McIntyre wrote in her staff report.

City approves library remodel design contract

Once Cushing Terrell was far enough along on the remodel design, library staff put the door project out to bid and the lower but was $68,250, according to staff.

The library doesn’t have the additional funds to move forward with the door replacement project at this time and won’t be able to adjust the scope and rebid the project in time to obligate the funds by the Dec. 31 deadline.

Library reviewing proposals for remodel design [2023]

Library officials have notified Cascade County Commissioners and they will attempt to reallocate the funds to a different project.

County updates progress of ARPA funded projects

County approves $13.3 million in ARPA allocations [2022]

Library staff said they’ll adjust the door issues during the larger remodel once more funds are raised.

Cascade County Commissioner Joe Briggs told The Electric that the library’s ARPA funds and any other funds that may be released back to the county due to an inability to meet the federal deadlines, the commission will reallocate those funds to existing ARPA projects already being reported to the U.S. Treasury.

There’s not enough time to go through the legally required process to allocate the funding to any new projects not on the current obligated list since funds have to be obligated by Dec. 31, under the federal rules.