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RESOLUTION R-1415-66: A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORMAN, OKLAHOMA, AND THE NORMAN TAX INCREMENT FINANCE AUTHORITY APPROPRIATING $4,000 FROM THE NORTH PARK TIF FUND BALANCE TO BE USED FOR ADDITIONAL MATERIAL TESTING IN CONNECTION WITH THE INTERSTATE DRIVE EAST EXTENSION PROJECT.
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BACKGROUND: On August 22, 2006, City Council approved Contract No. K-0607-45 by and between the City of Norman and the University Town Center L.L.C., regarding Development Agreement No. 1 for the initial project activities associated with the traffic improvements needed to mitigate the additional traffic generated by the University North Park (UNP) development.
In 2008, the City constructed 0.62 miles of the 1.7 miles of the I-35 frontage road (Interstate Drive East) from Robinson Street to Conference Center Drive. During the design of the Rock Creek Road Overpass in 2008, the bridge was designed to span the future frontage road. On May 7, 2012, City Council approved Development Agreement No. 5 for the UNP Tax Increment Finance (TIF) District which includes funding to complete the frontage road (Interstate Drive East) from Conference Center Drive to 24th Avenue NW. During the summer of 2012, the I-35/Robinson Street Interchange NE Quadrant project tied the I-35/Robinson Street Interchange ramps with the frontage road (Interstate Drive East).
Projects included in Development Agreement No. 5 are:
· Construction of the I-35/Robinson Street NE Interchange (Completed September 2012)
· Construction of the intersection of 24th Avenue NW and Legacy Park Drive (Completed January 2013)
· Construction of Legacy Park (Under Construction)
· Design of the I-35/Robinson Street West Interchange (Under Design)
· Construction of the Interstate Drive East Extension (Under Construction)
Contract K-1314-114, the construction contract with Silver Star Construction Company, Inc. of Moore, Oklahoma for the Interstate Drive East Extension was approved by Council on April 22, 2014. Throughout the design of the project, the scope was changed to include additional items; sidewalk, a 12-inch water line, increased storm water system and a roundabout. These additional items also increased the budget for the project. To address the increased cost, all stakeholders contributed funds to reimburse the City for improvements. Contract No. K-1314-138 was a Cost Participation Agreement between the City of Norman and the Norman Tax Increment Finance Authority (NTIFA), the Norman Economic Development Coalition (NEDC) and the University North Park (UNP) to reimburse the NTIFA for improvements to the Interstate Drive East Extension Project that benefited those agencies.
In a separate agreement, the Norman Utilities Authority (NUA) created a Payback Project which will reimburse the City of Norman as each private development parcel requires public water service. In addition to these agreements, Sidewalk is considered a development improvement as stated by City Ordinance 19-503(A) and was not included in the Cost Participation Agreement. Council authorized Change Order No. 1 to remove the sidewalk from the project and this change order was approved along with the contract on April 22, 2014. Sidewalks will be constructed by each subsequent development parcel located along Interstate Drive. The original total construction contract amount for the Interstate Drive East Extension Project is $3,900,059. Below is the breakdown of the funding:
· NTIFA - $2,806,156
· NEDC - $385,680
· UNP LLC - $369,516
· NUA - $338,707
On July 22, 2014, City Council approved Change Order No. 2 with Silver Star Construction Company to modify the subgrade material on the Interstate Drive East Extension Project. The $131,094.25 change order increased the contract amount to $4,031,153.25. Construction of the Interstate Drive East Extension Project is expected to be complete by the end of January 2015.
DISCUSSION: Material testing is an important aspect of every project. Material testing includes soil, aggregates, concrete and asphalt. The testing verifies the installed material meets the design specifications. To estimate the number of tests required for the project, staff uses the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) Sampling Frequency Report and the City Standard Specifications and Construction Drawings. The City contracts annually with an independent, third party geotechnical firm to perform the material testing services on City projects.
The overrun in testing on this project was primarily caused by the additional testing needed to analyze the soil when high sulfate levels were discovered. The testing lab determined there were four different soil classifications throughout the project. This is typical of a roadway construction project of this size, approximately 1.2 miles. Each soil required multiple tests to determine what was needed to properly modify and stabilize the soil. Additional testing of other materials, including concrete and asphalt, is common on most projects. Additional testing for these items was also required.
The additional cost for required testing is $4,000.00 of 0.10% of the total cost of the project. If approved, funds are currently available in the University North Park TIF General Fund Revenue Account (Account No. 057-0000-253.20-00). There are not sufficient funds in the project account to cover these costs.
RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends appropriating $4000 from the University North Park TIF Fund Balance (Account No. 057-0000-253.20-00) to the Interstate Drive East Extension Construction (Account No. 057-9545-431.61-01 Project No. UT0009) for the cost of additional testing of construction materials.