Life’s a Beach…unless your renovating City Hall and the police department in Charles City.
Work was going along “swimmingly” for the first four months of the almost $5 million project, but things recently “ran aground” thanks to too much sand.
That’s Mayor Dean Andrews, who says the amount of sand has led to alterations of plans that called for removal of the building’s outside arches.
During a special City Council meeting May 28th, Councilman DeLaine Freeseman was surprised that the sand surprised the contractors.
Doug Foreshoe with Bergland Cram, the design engineers for the project, explained that the soil borings weren’t deemed necessary because original renovation plans were not to exceed the footprint of the current building.
While it means an added cost of over $80,000, Andrews says the City won’t exceed its budget.
The City will need to draw another $16,000 from that contingency fund to add a pit and submersible pump to better drain the police garage.
Renovations are targeted for completion in April 2026.
