MIN CC 12/01/1987 Emergency Session, Book O, pg. 980-81MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 1, 1987 COUNCIL MEETING
BOOK "0" 980
MINUTES OF AN EMERGENCY HUNTSVILLE CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON THE 1ST DAY OF DECEMBER, 1987 IN THE CITY
NALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS, LOCATED AT 1212 AVENUE M IN THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, COUNTY OF WALKER, TEXAS AT
12:15 P.M.
The Council met in an emergency session with the following members present:
Jane Monday, Mayor
Eugene Barrett
Gary Bell
lla G. Gaines
Percy Howard, Jr.
Members absent: James L. Carter
William B. Green
William L. Hammock
William H. Knotts, Jr.
City Officers present:
Gene Pipes, City Manager
Scott Bounds, City Attorney
Ruth DeShaw, City Secretary
FORMAL SESSION
Mayor Monday then called this emergency meeting to order.
Consider award of bid for repairs to the City's Service Center Warehouse.
Mr. Gene Pipes, City Manager, advised the two bids opened this morning totaled $119,485 from
Commercial Siding and Maintenance Company of Houston, and $93,200 from Grisham Construction Company of
Huntsville, both substantially higher than the insurance appraiser's estimate of last week. He said these
bids are based on a specifications book and set of plans as prepared by the structural engineer, Mr. Larry
Lassiter, hired by the city for this purpose, which are his estimation of what will be required to restore
the building both structurally and operationally, with steel support members and skin, both outside and
in, sheetrock, lighting fixtures, all electrical fepairs, bid as separate items. Mr.- Lassiter's estimate
for this work was $100,000. Mr. Pipes said the City was estimating the damage to be between 520,000 and
550,000. He noted the emergency nature of this item is that the order for supplies to make these repairs
will require approximately 16 weeks, (about six weeks on delivery of the seterials and seven weeks to make
repairs).
Mr. Pipes indicated the insurance company adjuster has not had time since the 10:00, -A.M. bid
opening today, to analyze the bids, and since the insurance adjustor's estimate was 537,000, he is
currently not in a position to authorize and approve the 593,200 bid. Therefore, he said, the Council is
being asked to approve the low bid subject to insurance company approval. He said the City has a 52,500
deductible, which has been met, so the payment of this bill is up to the insurance company. He then
recommended the City Council consider awarding the bid to the apparent low bidder, which is Grisham
Construction Company of Huntsville, in the amount of 593,200, subject to insurance company authorization
of the amount. Councilmember Barrett then made the motion to award the bid to Grisham Construction
Company of Huntsville in the amount of 593.200. subject to insurance company approval of this bid_and
Councilmember Howard seconded the motion.
piscussion: Councilmember Bell asked if we could get a better bid if it was circulated more
widely. Mr. Pipes said it will take more time and he didn't think the city would fare any better, partly
because of the way the bid was structured, i.e., replacement of pieces that may need to be replaced, but
we won't know whether they need to be or not until we take it all apart and find out. He said he didn't
feel there is any room for negotiation here, because the contractor is going to protect himself while at
the same time not leave any excess on the table. Mr. Pipes said the City originally asked the insurance
company to handle the project so the city would not have to bid as it would then be a negotiated
settlement on the pert of the insurance company with a contractor to put the building back like it was.
However, he said, the insurance company did not want to do that, so the city had to put out a
specification book and do a set of plans. Councilmember Bell was concerned that the city may get stuck
with this bill. Mr. Pipes assured him the city would not and that is why he asked that the bid include
the term "subject to insurance company approval," because the Council carrot authorize a 5100,000 worth of
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MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 1, 1987 COUNCIL MEETING
BOOK "0" 981
work and then go argue with the insurance company. He said the City now has a temporary roof on the
building which is somewhat weather tight and temporary electrical service has been restored so that the
city can operate temporarily. All were in favor of the motion on the floor and it passed unanimously.
Consider Resolution No. 87 -17 authorizing the submission of a grant implication for a Community
Development Block Grant
Mr. Pipes requested the Council's approval of this resolution, the caption of which is as follows:
RESOLUTION NO. 87-17
A RESOLUTION OF THE CiTY COUNCIL OF THE CiTY OF HUNTSViLLE, TEXAS AUTHORIZING THE
SUBMISSION OF A TEXAS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM APPLICATION TO THE TEXAS DEPART-
MENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS FOR THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FUND; AND AUTHORIZING THE
MAYOR TO ACT AS THE CITY'S EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE IN ALL
MATTERS PERTAINING TO THE CITY'S PARTICIPATION IN THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.
Mr. Pipes advised this application is for $331,614 in grant funds to carry out sanitary sewage
facility construction. Additionally, he said, the City is enhancing its opportunity for these ceepetitive
grant funds by committing $82,462.00 for engineering design, inspection, surveying services and grant
administration, as a local match (in -kind commitment), frosr its water and sewer fund, for a total project
cost of S414,076. Mr. Pipes then identified the three areas targeted as follows. Neighborhood One is a
smell unsewered area on FM 247 north of Huntsville across from the Diagnostic Unit (there is a north
Huntsville lateral line running through there, but there is a ridge between the lateral and the isolated,
low income houses involved in this grant proposal that do not have sewer service, while being surrounded
by sewer service). The second smell section (Neighborhood Two) without sewer service , while being
surrounded by areas where sewer is availabte, is on Watkins Street /Ryans Ferry Road. He said the third
unsewered area (Neighborhood Three) is off of Possum Walk Road opposite Pine Shadows and Spring Lake, off
of Pine Hill Road. Councilmes*,er Bell made the motion to approve Resolution No. 87 -17 authorizing the
submission of this grant application. as discussed above. and Councilmerrber Howard seconded the motion.
All were in favor and the motion passed unanimously.
CITY MANAGER'S REPORT--GENE PIPES
Mr. Pipes presented photographs showing the recent storm damage caused by the ten inch rain. He
advised that several areas suffered severe damage: Spring Lake had sewer and water mains washed out and
an old WPA project headwall on 10th Street was washed out. He said next week, we will need to award a bid
for emergency repairs to get this headwall reinstated so that we can put the water line beck in service
and make other wash -out repairs. He said the line is now only secured by a chain borrowed from Gulf
States to hold the cap on the end of the pipe.
Mayor-Monday asked Mr. Pipes to share with the Council next week the functions of the city crews
in response to the community's needs during a storm. She noted everything went so smoothly during our
recent wind and rain stomas that she would like for the Council to know how the city functions in order to
be so extremely responsive. She said the Council sometimes does not give enough credit to those who are
out there keeping the city safe. She said she would like to spotlight this fact in the next meeting.
Adjournment. R .•- $fully s
aw, City Secretary
December 1, 1987