Dear Mayor Morrissey, City of Rockford Alderman, and County Board Members: Several, long-pending downtown parking and building issues have reached a critical state. By establishing a collaborative working relationship, I believe that the City and County can come to a mutually agreed upon strategy that will address and diminish these concerns, permanently. The following is a summary of the issues and where they stand, at this time. In June 2012, we were notified that the top two floors (400 stalls) of the Concourse Parking Deck would be closed indefinitely. This continues to be extremely problematic for county employees, citizens, jurors, and also patrons attending events at the BMO Harris Center. As of this date, weve been provided with no information as to a plan to rectify the situation. Consequently, we spoke with Desman Associates, the engineering company involved in the construction of the Concourse Deck. As a result of their original participation, as well as having performed regular site evaluations for maintenance, they were very familiar with the condition of the deck when we spoke. Desman also indicated that following each of the four assessments done for the City over a ten year period, repairs and maintenance were recommended but never executed. In July 2014, Desman performed initial field work to determine overall condition at a cost to the County of $13k, and then brought in Golf Construction to submit a restoration proposal, which is attached. You will note several phases of construction during, roughly, the course of a year, with a final cost ranging from $5.2 to $6.75 million ($6.75m being worst-case-scenario), dependent upon the number of post-tension-tendons to be repaired or replaced. Desman Associates has in-depth experience with decks similar to the Concourse, most recently having rehabbed two comparable decks in Milwaukee, WI. Their current recommendations indicate that after performing the above mentioned scope of work, the deck will be good for another 20+ years, provided proper maintenance is completed. They further recommend an amount of $50-$100/stall/year be allocated for future maintenance needs. One option to consider would be that the two largest users of the deck, namely the County and BMO Harris Bank Center assume ownership and perform the suggested restoration plan and provide for future maintenance. The debt service required to achieve this would be in lieu of the current parking fees paid for current use of the Concourse Deck. Obviously, this would need approval from our respective boards and council. Another benefit of this plan is that it would free up the north BMO parking lot for other uses. (Please note that the attachment entitled, Weed Lot, summarizes the Citys overall dollar investment into the BMO north lot and is almost identical to the asking price of the BMO south lot and is similar in size and capacity.) The second urgent issue is the immediate need to vacate and raze the PSB. For three years, the County has requested that the City provide an exit strategy. We are, once again, respectfully requesting that you act upon moving the Rockford Police Department to another facility, with an anticipated move of no later than the end of this calendar year. At that time, we could provide you with temporary space in the Ware Center to help expedite the PSB demolition. As previously indicated on several occasions, the entire mechanical system is original and frankly, could fail at any moment at a cost in excess of $3 million. Again, in the interest of all parties concerned, I emphatically encourage you to make decisions quickly relative to this move. Finally, the County currently utilizes no more than approximately 17% of the Public Safety Building, including the basement, first floor clinic, and coroner, and plans to be out entirely by the end of the year. Based upon the $1.3 million operating expenses of the building, the Countys share of those expenses are $38,000/ month and the Citys share is $70,000/ month. That said, I dont understand why the City hasnt paid its share of PSB expenses since last July. Defaulting on an agreement put in place and followed for 30 years is totally unacceptable. The City currently owes the County $1,018,000 for their share of the PSB expenses; the current balance on the Board of Election issue, based on the statute of limitations, is $375,000. And further, we offered in exchange for the property, and any consideration for the Board of Election dispute, to demolish the building, build a new entrance to the Courthouse, and replace basement mechanicals at a total cost of approximately $3.2 million, which normally would be split based on our joint ownership status. If you need more information, please do not hesitate to call. Cc: Members of Cooperative Parking Committee Best Regards, Scott Scott H. Christiansen, Chairman Winnebago County Board 404 Elm Street, Room 533 Rockford IL 61101 Ofc: (815) 319-4233 FAX: (815) 319-4226
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 12:28:57 +0000
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