Thursday, March 31, 2005
The board also will deal with razing the Masters Tuxedo block and with street paving.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The city board of control was to approve today almost $100,000 in cost reductions for the city's downtown arena.
The city and Hunt Construction Group, the Dallas-based company hired to oversee the arena's construction, are taking another close look at the specifications of projects at the site, said Carmen Conglose Jr., the deputy director of the city's public works department.
The city and company identified aspects of two projects at the arena that could be scaled down and result in a savings of $96,693, Conglose said.
"The goal is to build it as cost-effective as possible and still produce a quality facility," he said. "We're always looking to save money."
The companies hired to do work at the arena have to agree to the cost reductions, said Michael Perry of Hunt Construction.
Perry added that other projects at the arena will be reviewed, and requests for more cost reductions are forthcoming.
"These are the only two so far, but there'll be more," Perry said.
Reductions
The two cost reductions that were to be approved today by the board of control were:
U A $56,443 reduction from a contract with Parella-Pannunzio Inc. The Austintown-based company was awarded a $1,381,406 contract for concrete work. The savings results from the company agreeing to not add a silverish color to the concrete and to use a less-expensive type of mesh but with equivalent strength in the concrete, Conglose said.
U A $40,250 reduction from a contract with Roger Kreps Drywall and Plastering. The Boardman-based company was awarded a $2,159,683 contract for a variety of items, including installing metal paneling. Instead of a more expensive handmade metal paneling, the company agreed to use premanufactured metal paneling for the building's exterior, Perry said.
The board of control will also be asked today to increase the amount paid to two other companies doing work at the arena project by $9,041. Most of the requests from contractors working on the arena have been modest amounts.
The arena, expected to cost about $41 million, is scheduled to open in November and has not exceed its budget, city officials said.
Other business
Also at today's meeting, the board of control was expected to approve a $91,869 agreement with MS Consultants Inc. to have the Youngstown-based company provide engineering services for the demolition of the former Masters building complex on West Federal Street and replace it with a parking lot.
City council recently approved spending about $500,000 to demolish the buildings, vacant for about 20 years.
The board was also to consider today an $81,920 contract with Thomas Fok and Associates to have the Youngstown-based firm provide administration, construction inspection and materials testing for its $1.2-million street-repaving program.
A list of the city's streets slated for repaving will be finalized in the next 10 days, Conglose said. Each of the city's seven wards will get about an equal amount of money for street repaving, he said.
skolnick@vindy.com