Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Funds found for project

Sources for additional money to complete upgrades planned for the city's water system was among the main topics of conversation at the February meeting of the Prescott City Council.

Prescott City Accountant Carl Dalrymple said there are several sources that could be tapped for the additional money.

"But let me first tell you that it can't come out of the budget," Dalrymple told the council.

He told the council the budget has already been amended three times since it was passed in December.

"I want to remind you that we're only in February," Dalrymple said. "I encourage you to be careful."

The water project was offered for bid more than a month ago with the Bossier City, La., firm of Peck Construction winning the bid at a total cost of more than $1.2 million. The city passed a bond but the total amount available from that bond left the city about $200,000 short.

There were several items included in the project that could have been eliminated, reducing the cost of the project overall, but the council voted this week to use money from other sources to complete all of the planned upgrades.

A portion of the money will come from a retired bond issue, but the city still had to find $129,000. Dalrymple told the council he had two sources to recommend for the shortfall.

One of those is the sales tax rollover account. Revenue from the city's sales tax is put into an account annually and any amount left over is moved into a rollover account. Dalrymple said there is about $330,000 currently in the account.

The proceeds from this year's sales tax collections have already been included in the city's current budget.

Another possible source for the revenue, Dalrymple said, is the city's utility depreciation fund. This fund is set aside for any major repairs to city utilities.

Dalrymple said the council could decide to take money from either or both of those accounts, and said the ultimate decision would belong to the council.

"The sales tax can be used for anything, right?" Councilman Dick Bright asked.

Dalrymple said that was correct, but said the depreciation fund could only be used for work to the city's utilities. There is $574,000 in the public utility depreciation fund.

Prescott Mayor Howard Taylor said his recommendation was to take $100,000 from the depreciation fund and the remaining $29,000 from the sales tax fund. The council approved the measure.

Sidewalks and several building projects in the city were another topic of discussion during the council meeting with the council approving a resolution to dedicate the money necessary to complete a downtown sidewalk renovation project.

The city has been awarded a $405,000 grant from the state Highway and Transportation Department for the sidewalk project. The grant requires a 20 percent local match.

Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Economic Development Office, said the next step will be to see how far the money will go.

The project will address several problems, including handicap access and drainage, Chadwell said.

"And then, we also just want to make it look nice," he said.

Chadwell told the council work has begun on the renovation of the old train depot building. That project is slated to be completed in six months and will restore the building to near its original condition. A freight dock at the rear of the building will provide handicap access.

Meanwhile, the work on the mural park is also underway, Chadwell said. Several "pocket parks" are also being planned, but Chadwell had no concrete information about the progress of those parks.

The old hospital building could be in line for a renovation. Chadwell said there is a prospect interested in the building. A grant request to the state for help with renovating the building has been submitted and Chadwell said it looks "favorable." He said it is not certain whether the project will be funded this year, or next year, but the city should know the status of the grant within a couple of months.

Easements for a rural water project currently underway was the final subject of Chadwell's address to the city. He said about half of the easements required for the project have been signed and returned to the city.

Then Chadwell said he wanted to address some rumors associated with projects in the city. "It's funny how these things get started and take on a life of their own," Chadwell said.

Rumor number one is the city will install meters on wells and charge people for the water they use.

"Not true," Chadwell said to the laughter of the council.

He said there have also been calls to the Prescott-Nevada County Chamber of Commerce office regarding the new parking areas of the city.

People were upset the city plans to install parking meters. Chadwell said this rumor is also not true, and he asked the council to help dispel these rumors.