City Council Meeting Date: April 7, 2026
To: Mayor and Members of Council
City Administrator
From: Andrew Tussing, Streets & Parks Manager
David Bennett, Public Works Director/City Engineer
Title
Consider Accepting Bids and Awarding Contract - 2026 Park Improvements Project (PARK2025-E18).
Body
Action Requested:
Staff recommends approval of the attached Resolution (Attachment 1) accepting bids and awarding the contract for the 2026 Park Improvements Project (PARK2025-E18).
Summary Report:
2026 Park Improvement Project consists of site work, landscaping, and restoration for the reconstruction of playgrounds at three (3) parks within the city. The parks include Central Park, Dresden Hill Park, and Riverside Lions Park.
The City has been working with Bruce Jacobson (Landscape Architect) and Bolten & Menk, Inc. to replace the playground off Seventh Street in Riverside Park and make updates and improvements to both Central Park and Dresden Hill Park.
Staff has held neighborhood meetings and worked with Park Advisory Board to gather input for current needs of each park. We have also worked with Age Friendly Northfield to get input on making sure each park is fully accessible for all ages.
The City received ten (10) competitive bids (Attachment 6), which were publicly opened and tabulated on February 27, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. The bids ranged from $580,945.00 to $1,012,372.40 with the lowest responsible bidder being Albrecht Company with a total bid amount of $580,945.00.
City Plans & Policies Relevance:
NA
Alternative Options:
Staff recommends awarding project as is and authorizing a budget amendment.
Alternative option is to award project with the removal of Central Park improvements. Park improvements would be reprogrammed another year; however, we believe this project will cost the city at least 10% more with delays and rebidding.
Financial Impacts:
$9,943 will be taken from Capital Park fund and put into the 1% for the Arts and Culture fund.
Initial cost estimates for the park improvement project were developed during the planning phase using historical pricing, conceptual design assumptions, and recent comparable municipal projects. As the project has moved into the quotation and bidding phase, the submitted contractor quotes have come in higher than the original projected budget.
Based on the quotes received to date, the project is currently estimated to exceed the originally allocated budget. Staff have evaluated the submitted proposals and identifying potential options to address the funding gap. These options may include scope adjustments, and value engineering opportunities. Staff was able to drop the amount by $63,396; any additional funding needed for the three projects will come from the Capital Park fund.
Staff also recognize that the project design was developed through extensive input from community users and stakeholder groups. As such, every effort will be made to preserve the integrity of the original design and maintain the key features and amenities identified as priorities by the community, while making only necessary and thoughtful modifications to address budget constraints.
|
2026 Park Project |
Engineer Estimate |
Bid Actual |
|
Salvage & Removals |
$36,000 |
$36,260 |
|
Playground Equipment (Central & Dresden) |
$266,000 |
$266,490 |
|
Playground Equipment (Riverside) |
$174,000 |
$174,000 |
|
Site Work & Landscaping |
$589,167 |
$517,549 ($63,396 value engineering) |
|
Total |
$1,065,167 |
$994,299 |
|
Contingency |
$68,518 |
$51,755 |
|
1% for Art |
|
$9,943 |
|
Overhead |
$40,000 |
$40,000 |
|
Total |
$1,173,685 |
$1,095,997 |
|
CIP Budget |
|
$935,000 |
Tentative Timelines:
Project Process for each park (Attachments 7-9).