City Selects Engineer For Aquatic Center
The city of Glenwood has selected JEO Consultants of Omaha as its engineering firm for a $4.75 million outdoor aquatic center to be built adjacent to a new gymnasium being constructed at Glenwood Community High School.
The city council selected JEO at its regular meeting Tuesday, Sept. 23, at the recommendation of the Glenwood Aquatic Center Committee, which reviewed requests for proposals (RFPs) from eight firms interested in serving as the engineer on the project.
Committee spokesperson Maddi Sieck said after the eight proposals were reviewed initially, the list was narrowed down to three firms. Representatives from the three firms took part in face-to-face interviews. Sieck said after the interviews, JEO stood out as a firm that would lead the project from start to finish and be available down the road should unforeseen problems arise.
“We’re looking for a company that’s going to design something that’s going to last a long time and is going to make an efficient pool that gets us to our operation and management goals,” Sieck said.
JEO was the firm the committee and city were working with in designing the proposed aquatic center for the $4.75 million bond issue that failed with city voters in May.
“We’ve had a great working relationship with them and they know the project really well,” Sieck said. “When I look at a 2016 deadline, I know JEO is going to get us there in our budget and on time.”
Members of the committee and the city council both said they believe it’s advantageous to work with an established firm that’s close by should problems arise down the road.
“They’re the only one from Omaha,” Sieck said. “We’re going to have them as a resource just 20 or 30 minutes away from us.”
Committee member Mary Gunderson noted JEO has a longstanding relationship with the city and Mills County.
“They are looking to be in Glenwood as we grow,” Gunderson said. “They’re not going anywhere. They want to knock this pool out of the park so they can continue having a good working relationship with Mills County and Glenwood.”
The aquatic center is projected to be built in time for the 2016 summer swimming season.
The $4.75 million in funding will come from a combination of Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) revenue, private donations, grants and $650,000 the city has already set aside. The LOST dollars and $650,000 in place will cover the cost of the project minus the “Lazy River,” which would be funded from the donations and grants. The Charles E. Lakin Foundation has committed $450,000 to the Lazy River and the project is under consideration for a Vision Iowa CAT (Community Attraction and Tourism) grant.
Until recently, the project had been referred to as the Glenwood Aquatic Center, but Gunderson said a stipulation for the $450,000 gift requires the naming rights for the entire facility to be given to the Charles E. Lakin Foundation.
Glenwood city administrator Brian Kissel said although naming rights was an issue that was never discussed openly at a city council meeting, council members were made aware of the foundation’s stipulation through e-mail communication. He said the city is comfortable calling the facility the Charles E. Lakin Aquatic Center because of the substantial amount of the gift.
Kissel said the commitment from the Charles E. Lakin Foundation and all future donations and grants will be earmarked for the Lazy River portion of the project, which is projected to carry a price tag of around $800,000. If the additional $350,000 is not raised, the Lazy River will not be included in the project and the city won’t receive the Charles E. Lakin Foundation’s gift, Kissel said.