Title
Approval to Issue Debt for Yelm Highway Community Park Phase I Construction and the Armory Arts Center Phase I Renovations
Recommended Action
Committee Recommendation:
The Finance Committee provided guidance to present a debt package to Council that fully funds both the Armory Arts Center Phase I Renovations and Yelm Highway Community Park Phase I Construction with limited use of additional parks fund balances and minimal use of Non-voted Utility Tax (NVUT) 1/2% (sunsets 2029).
City Manager Recommendation:
Move to approve the staff recommendation to issue a 30-year year debt, with estimated proceeds of $26.57M and an annual payment of $1.72M, extending the use of the NVUT 1/2% from 2029 to 2049 to fund Yelm Highway Community Park Phase I Construction and the Armory Arts Center Phase I Renovations.
Report
Issue:
Whether to approve the recommendation to issue debt for Yelm Highway Community Park Phase I Construction and the Armory Arts Center Phase I Renovations.
Staff Contact:
Sylvana Niehuser, Interim Director of Parks, Arts and Recreation Department, 360.753.8068
Presenter(s):
Sylvana Niehuser, Interim Director of Parks, Arts and Recreation
Background and Analysis:
On April 21, staff presented a debt package to the Finance Committee that was for a debt package of $18-19 million to fund Phase I construction of Yelm Highway Community Park (YHCP) and the Phase I Renovations of the Armory Arts Center (Armory).
In May, cost estimates were updated by the project consultants for the Armory and YHCP construction projects and the costs have increased over $11M combined. Staff worked to reduce costs through a reduction in the scope of work and materials, which resulted in $4M in savings on the YHCP project and options for scope reduction on the Armory renovations. The combined cost of the projects is $45.7M.
To fund these projects, staff presented several 20-year debt package options to Finance Committee on June 16, 2025. The options included using add...
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