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45 °F Forecast | Road Cams Tuesday, April 5, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend February 5, 2005 Parking garage costs hit $10.2 million If you go WHAT : Medford Urban Renewal Agency board of directors meeting. WHEN : 7 p.m. Tuesday. WHERE : Council Chambers, third Floor, City Hall, 411 W. Eighth St., Medford. For more information, contact MURA Director Kurt Olsen at 774-2700 or visit www.downtownmedford.com on the Web. By MEG LANDERS Mail Tribune The Medford Urban Renewal Agency says it needs $832,368 more to complete downtown Medford’s new parking structure project, bringing the total cost to $10.2 million. Advertisement Kurt Olsen, the agency’s director, said the 8.5 percent bump in price isn’t from cost overruns. It’s higher because the project began before precise costs were established. "They were building this thing before the plans were even completed," said Olsen. "I wouldn’t call them overruns." He said the agency decided to go ahead and start rather than spend another year refining the plans to get more accurate costs. Now all the bids are complete, and the numbers more realistic. MURA’s board of directors will meet Tuesday to discuss the change. The project broke ground in June and the completion date was set for Sept. 23. The 412-space, five-story parking structure will be on the northeast edge of the lot along Evergreen Way, a planned pedestrian-friendly street to be built southwest of the train tracks. The lot is bordered by West Main Street to the north, Fir Street to the west, Eighth Street to the south and railroad tracks to the east. MURA’s first parking structure, completed in 1998 at Bartlett and Sixth streets, has 382 spaces and cost $4.2 million. The contractor for the new project is Skanska USA Building Inc. of Beaverton. The architect is Thompson Vaivoda & Associates Architects Inc. of Portland. MURA’s budget comes from tax increment financing. The agency gets taxes collected on the increases in assessed value since 1988 on properties within MURA’s boundaries. The agency issues bonds for projects and repays them with the tax revenue. Don Burt, project manager and MURA’s former director, said workers from many trades are involved in the project, including cement workers, steel workers, carpenters, excavators, plumbers and electricians. "We probably have 50 workers out there any given day; some days they go up to 75," he said. The $10.2 million project cost isn’t just the parking structure, he said. It includes sidewalks, sewers and work on Evergreen Way, the pedestrian-friendly street the agency is building adjacent to the train tracks. Burt said a 55-foot-tall concrete form for the structure’s outer walls that went into place this week gives the project presence. "It’s coming out of the ground," he said. Olsen said the agency decided to take advantage of the project’s location next to train tracks. In March or April, 60-foot precast concrete panels are scheduled for delivery by rail. Over the next six years, three other buildings will be built on the lot by Cook Development Corp. of Portland. Cook, which would own the buildings, has hired MCA Architects in Portland for the design work. The buildings would include residential, commercial and office space. Developers are scheduled to be on site for the first building in November, said Burt. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Distance Education Diamonds Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Fasa Advertisement s