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PINE BLUFF CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES BOND PROJECT FOR ROOF REPAIR
By Erin France/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Wednesday, October 7, 2009 11:33 PM CDT
The Pine Bluff City Council approved borrowing more funds through bond issue to repair the Pine Bluff Convention Center’s auditorium roof.
The move was requested by Bob Purvis, director of the convention center, at Monday night’s council meeting.
“It would really help us with some of our immediate needs,” he said.
Before the request, the city was slated to issue more than $5.5 million of principal in bonds, and up to $6 million, said Bob Wright of Crews and Associates.
“(The convention center’s board) realized the capital improvement needs they had at the convention center,” he said. “They called and asked if that was a feasible and possible mechanism to take care of their capital needs.”
Wright said that while the city could not exceed the $6 million according to a previous ordinance, there was room under that ceiling for the convention center.
Purvis said there is an estimated price tag of $200,000 for a new auditorium roof, with about another $200,000 left over for other capital improvements.
The city will receive $3 million in new funding from the bond issue and it too will go to capital improvements.
On Monday the council passed a budget adjustment with priority projects and their estimated values:
An Enterprise Resource Planning system and Dell server at $253,190.
Sewer extension past the Wal-Mart Supercenter down Olive Street at $391,000.
Two replacement pumper trucks for the fire department at $800,000.
Street overlay projects at $500,000.
A new phone system at $100,000.
A 100-foot aerial fire truck at $800,000.
Miscellaneous projects at $155,810.
Monday’s council meeting also included a second budget adjustment setting a channel for $500,000 in bond funding to go to the street department.
At a September committee meeting, J.T. Golden, the interim street department manager, presented a few council members with two lists for possible street overlays.
The 2009 Priority Overlay list includes:
27th Avenue at $53,407.72
8th Avenue at $92,968.99
Olive Street at $64,616.75
39th Avenue at $36,264.50
Hutchinson at $19,450.96
Ridgway/Hazel at $19,780.64
46th Avenue at $34,286.
Catalpa Street at $25,714.83
Port Road at $73,188.35
Fluker Street at $89,672.22
Jefferson Parkway at $120,991.55
Streets that need overlay:
Walnut Street from Fifth Avenue to the Martha Mitchell Expressway at $60,990.29.
40th Avenue and West Mulberry Street at $17,143.22.
State Street from Fifth Avenue to Barraque Street at $63,298.04.
Port Road from the Martha Mitchell Expressway to Rowell Street at $308,577.91.
Ohio Street from Harding Avenue to 38th Avenue at $253,851.49.
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