Moses Lake council to discuss Rec Center contract and more tonight

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake City Council will meet Tuesday night for a study session at 6 p.m. to discuss design fees for the proposed Larson Rec Center, followed by a regular council meeting at 7 p.m.

The City Council at a Feb. 10 meeting tabled a decision to amend a contract for the firm designing the proposed 30,000-square-foot recreation center after a council member expressed concerns about the project’s costs.

The amendment would have increased the maximum amount allocated for The Driftmier Architects’ design fee from $451,249 to $821,602. The increase reflects the increased size of the project, which was first proposed in 2018 to be 14,000 square feet and was later more than doubled to 30,000 square feet.

After a brief discussion, council member Dean Hankins made a motion to table the contract amendment until Tuesday’s meeting, when staff could give a final presentation on the project and the council would make a final decision.

“We have not agreed to even do the project yet, but we’re spending all this money on it,” Hankins said. “So instead of spending another $300-something thousand, should we not wait until we can vote on whether we’re moving forward with the project at all?”

A vote on that decision is expected Tuesday night.

The council will also look to approve its contract with Grant County Animal Outreach, increasing the city’s annual fee from $50,500 to $60,000. The fee compensates the shelter for housing animals impounded by city police or delivered by city staff, among other services. The city would also continue to rent the building that currently houses the shelter for $1 per year.

In addition, a presentation on the 2020 census will be made by U.S. Census Bureau Partnership Specialist Luis Gomez.