BACKGROUND:
On May 10, 2016, the Board of Supervisors approved the Contra Costa County CDBG Action Plan for the use of FY 2016/17 CDBG funds. Under the Infrastructure/Public Facilities (IPF) category, Pogo Park was allocated $220,210 of CDBG funds to construct a mini playfield and associated amenities (benches, lighting, landscaping) at Harbour-8 Park located in the Iron Triangle neighborhood within the City of Richmond. Experienced cost estimators using actual construction costs of similar projects during that time
put the original budget together. After a couple of years preparing the design and landscape architectural plans, Pogo Park put the project out to bid in early January 2019, with bids due on January 31, 2019. Pogo Park received one bid for the project; however, due to the current high demand for construction, the bid was approximately $115,000 higher than the original budget for the project. Consequently, Pogo Park is requesting $115,000 in additional CDBG funds to fill the budget gap. With the additional $115,000 in CDBG funds, the total amount in CDBG funds awarded to Pogo Park for the mini playfield project at Harbour-8 Park would be $335,210.
Available CDBG Funds: The additional $115,000 of CDBG funds are available due to there being approximately $1.1 million dollars more in CDBG Program Income received during the current fiscal year. The CDBG Program Income is considered as part of the available CDBG resources for the current fiscal year, but also included in the expenditure requirement for the year, per the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Therefore, the CDBG Program Income may be allocated to new eligible and "shovel-ready" projects, or to existing projects previously awarded but experience a financing gap to start and complete the project. Allocating these available funds to eligible "shovel-ready" projects would also assist the County's CDBG Program in meeting HUD's expenditure requirement for the year.
Finance Committee Meeting: The Finance Committee met on February 25, 2019, and recommended to allocate up to $115,000 of additional CDBG funds to Pogo Park to complete the mini playfield project at Harbour-8 Park.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
Not awarding the additional funds to Pogo Park will result in delays in starting and completing the project, which would potentially affect the level of services provided at Harbour-8 Park.
CHILDREN'S IMPACT STATEMENT:
The project at Harbour-8 Park furthers the Children's Report Card outcome of creating "communities that are safe and provide a high quality of life for children and families."