City of Columbus - File #: 2665-2023

• File #: 2665-2023
• Version: 1
• Type: Ordinance
• Status: Passed
• File created: 9/18/2023
• In control: Public Service & Transportation Committee
• On agenda: 10/9/2023
• Final action: 10/12/2023
• Title: To amend the 2023 Capital Improvement Budget; to authorize the City Auditor to transfer funds and appropriation within the Streets and Highways Bond Fund; to authorize the City Auditor to establish an Auditor’s Certificate for the purpose of encumbering funds to be used to pay costs of improvements completed by railroad companies; to authorize the expenditure of up to $150,000.00 from the Streets and Highways Bond Fund to pay costs of improvements completed by railroad companies. ($150,000.00)

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result
10/12/2023	1	CITY CLERK	Attest
10/11/2023	1	MAYOR	Signed
10/9/2023	1	COUNCIL PRESIDENT	Signed
10/9/2023	1	Columbus City Council	Approved	Pass
10/2/2023	1	Columbus City Council	Read for the First Time

Explanation
1. BACKGROUND
This ordinance authorizes the establishment of an Auditor’s Certificate to allow payments to be made to railroad companies, or companies subcontracted by railroad companies, for work they have performed on Department of Public Service capital projects, and authorizes the Director of Public Service to use the Auditor’s Certificate to pay those costs.
The Department of Public Service administers and manages capital improvement projects within the public right-of-way, including resurfacing, roadway reconstruction, bridge rehabilitation and replacement, bikeway paths, sidewalks, and other transportation related projects. On occasion, the successful completion of those efforts requires work to be performed on or near railroad property or facilities. Railroad companies will not allow others to perform work on their property or facilities. They perform the required work and charge the cost of the improvements back to the Department of Public Service. When it is known that improvements will be required on railroad property or facilities in advance of the project starting, Public Service contracts with the railroad and encumbers funds to pay for those improvements. These contracted amounts are estimates provided by the railroads. Public Service is responsible for paying any costs that exceed the estimates provided by the railroad companies. In addition, there are occasions when work needs to be performed on or near railroad facilities on an emergency basis or that was not anticipated to be needed when a project was planned and designed. Projects then get delayed while contracts get put in place or modified and the funding is legislated.
To prevent these delays, the Department of Public Service would like to put in place an Auditor’s Certificate encumbering funds in the amount of $150,000.00 to allow payments to be made to railroad companies for these miscellaneous costs of capital improvements. For several years City Council has been ap...