Yes, it's true.
Tomorrow morning, after 9am, in the Lake County Administration building, with little transparency, and no description of the NEW cost estimates in the agenda, your Lake County Board of Commissioners will vote on moving forward the staff proposal to build a separate Emergency Operations Center (EOC).
Only, now, the new estimate from an architect seems to be $6-million to over ELEVEN MILLION DOLLARS for a building that staff originally said would cost around $4-million in Federal funds.
The rest has to come out of taxpayer's pockets.
If you remember, the County Board authorized an architect to prepare a cost estimate for the original EOC (Emergency Operating Center), estimated at $4-million, plus a second option with Sheriff & EMS dispatch centers for another unfunded $2-million.
The EOC center is the one where they wanted to spend $4-6-million on the ops center with mostly “free” Federal money. In the past four years, the County has only needed their current temporary EOC about 15 days total.
Well, NOW THE ARCHITECT’S ESTIMATE HAS GROWN TO A BARE BONES budget of $6-MILLION TO a fully optioned construction project costing up to $11-MILLION. You have to look at all the attachments to the tab 5 & tab 6 agenda items at the link below. The new schedule of financial impacts (which they conveniently did NOT insert in the agenda document) in ADDITION to the Federal grant funds would be from $2.4-million to $6.8-million in local County funding (YOUR tax money). Before, staff was saying that most of the original $4-million EOC (only) cost would be federally funded. Now, we see that the local taxpayers would have to foot the bill for $2-6-million.
The County Board’s agenda for tomorrow’s meeting is HERE, and has scheduled discussion item tabs 5 and 6 to approve an EOC “design option” (tab 5) and then AWARD a contract for construction management services for the EOC (tab 6).
TAB 5: The “design option” is to ADD space to the original EOC for a “communication center” for the Sheriff and EMS dispatchers and possibly other departments. At prior meetings, there WAS NO FUNDING FOURCE for these additional spaces to the original EOC center. Remember, the Sheriff just got the entire old courthouse next to the Admin building, and has renovated it. See the copy below of the agenda request document, and read the paragraph in red on the funding sources – note they don’t actually know where the funds will come from, but want to approve a construction management firm anyway.
TAB 6: AWARD of construction services management contract to PPI: A contract award committee went through 22 applications for the contract, narrowed it to four top finalists, then selected PPI, Inc. which is the SAME firm being used for the Judicial expansion construction project. Staff structured the award agreement so that the first line item was at “no cost”, thus they could claim no fiscal impact (it takes longer to explain why, so ask me if you want). The agenda request document also says that no firm fixed price will be “negotiated” until the project design is complete. Thus they are asking the Board to approve a blank check. However, if the Board approves the construction of the EOC, there is a significant impact of about 5% of the contract price, or around $550,000 (my rough estimate), and then other costs are “negotiated” – all such costs should be negotiated up front and stated as a possible fiscal impact on the agenda document. Thus the Board can approve this selection with “no fiscal impact”, but the $550,000 cost (and other negotiated fees) will kick in if they separately approve the EOC project. This is a way to HIDE actual cost impacts from the public by playing these games. I have not read the 133 page contract yet.
This is nothing but another building boondoggle. This is a clear example of a philosophy of big government spending vs controlled spending.
If at all possible, please come to the 9am Board “work session” meeting TOMORROW (Tuesday, Sept 14) in the County Admin building on Main St. to provide public input. There is a good chance that Elaine Renick will not be there, which means it would be easier to get it passed, since she has questioned its merit. Staff would not be bringing this to the Board unless they thought that three members of the Board would approve this boondoggle, so be at the meeting if you can.
Vance Jochim
Chief FiscalRanger
Here is the Schedule C table for agenda tab 5 item that shows the possible sources they want to increase or take funds from. The “Financial Impact to LC” is the needed funding amount ABOVE the amounts provided by Federal grant money.
SCHEDULE C - POTENTIAL FUNDING SOURCES |
||||||
Option |
Financial Impact to LC |
Ambulance MSTU |
Reallocation of Sales Tax Funding for LCSO Administration Building Remodel |
E - 911 Funds |
Sales Tax |
|
Option 1-A |
$6,742,879.00 |
$292,011.00 |
$318,891.00 |
$619,466.00 |
$5,512,511.00 |
|
Option 1-B |
$6,583,949.00 |
$292,011.00 |
$318,891.00 |
$619,466.00 |
$5,353,581.00 |
|
Option 1-C |
$6,831,004.00 |
$292,011.00 |
$318,891.00 |
$619,466.00 |
$5,600,636.00 |
|
Option 2-A |
$2,650,722.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,650,722.00 |
|
Option 2-B |
$2,456,292.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,456,292.00 |
|
Option 2-C |
$2,680,097.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$2,680,097.00 |
|
Option 3-A |
$4,276,537.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
$4,276,537.00 |
Here is a copy of the County agenda request document, that summarizes funding, etc – READ the red paragraph!!!
On May 4th, 2010, the Lake County Board of County Commissioners awarded the Programming Phase, Phase I, of the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) Project to Architects Design Group (ADG). The Board directed staff to begin this programming and to review the feasibility and cost associated with combining the EOC with a joint Lake County Sheriff’s Department and Lake Sumter EMS communication center.
In order to develop this programming needs assessment, numerous meetings were conducted with Lake County Office of Emergency Management, Lake Sumter EMS, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Lake County Public Works Department, Lake County Office of Information Technology, PPI (Judicial Center Construction Manager), and Heery Architects (Judicial Center architects). In addition to these meetings, needs surveys were distributed, current office space reviewed, the Central Energy Plant assessed, and furniture inventoried and assessed for reuse. This information was analyzed and several development operations are presented in the attached report.
In addition to work on the needs assessment, staff reviewed the current grant funding that has been awarded to the County for the construction of the EOC portion of the project. One of these grants has some specific limitations as to the use of the funds. Specifically, this grant allows up to $1.5 million in funding for the sole costs of hardening the building and its ancillary structures. Due to this limitation, it would appear that hardening both the building and the central energy plant would provide a reduced financial impact to the County while providing the largest benefit to the entire county downtown campus north of Main Street. Expenditure of these funds does require a pre-construction design and cost benefit analysis review by FEMA. Staff does not anticipate any issues with this review; however, if such a review posed problems, these items would be presented to the Board.
Funding for this project will depend on which option is selected. In addition to the grant funds, infrastructure sales tax dollars are available in FY 2010-11 to construct an EOC, including hardening that facility as well as the Central Energy Plant. If the construction is expanded to include a communications center, other funding to move Sheriff’s dispatching and E-911 communication equipment also will be utilized. The attached Schedule C identifies potential sales tax, E-911, and Lake County Ambulance MSTU funds for the expanded project. If the construction is expanded to include both the EOC and the communications center, the priority on use of sales tax in 2012 may change, or the Board might consider a short term borrowing to complete construction. A complete financing plan would be brought to the Board at the time construction is authorized.
The Board requested that staff wait until the programming was performed prior to negotiation of a design services scope. Due to this request, staff has requested the scope of services and the fixed fees for the recommended options above. The scope of services require the same main list of tasks, however, the design fees are different due to the size differential and complexity of the buildings. The first scope is for an EOC building only and this fee is $358,700.00. Should the Board select the joint EOC/Communication Center or the EOC with a shelled space option, the fees are proposed at $540,580.00. The design cost for the shelled space option would encompass a design for the full joint use facility; however, all items in addition to the shell communication center would be designed and bid as add alternates for future Board consideration.
============================================================================
County May Spend Millions on EOC
September 13, 2010
On Tuesday, Commissioners will hear an agenda item and may spend several million dollars to build an Emergency Operations Center. The EOC is headquarters for emergency officials in times of hurricanes, tornadoes or other emergencies.
Commissioners have received several grants to fund a portion of the project but other funds would come from the local penny tax. They will consider several plans ranging from $6 to $11 million dollars. One plan includes moving the Sheriff's Communications Center into the new EOC. Advocates say the EOC is needed in times of emergency and the Communications Center is badly needed.
Opponents say emergencies occur rarely in Lake County and that other facilities have gotten the job done in the past. They also cite other priorities for use of the money.
Vance Jochim
Lake County Fiscal Rangers
Chief Fiscal Watchdog
Volunteers Searching for Ways to Improve Local Government Fiscal Management, Efficiency & Effectiveness
Mount Dora, FL 32757
Mobile: 352-638-3578