It Cost More Than Thought

An expensive change order for a delayed downtown improvement project receives Defiance City Council’s approval…but officials say the cost should be covered by grant funds. The order will amend a contract with All Excavating and Demolition, increasing the cost of the removal of buildings in Clinton Street’s 100 block…by $116 thousand dollars…pushing the cost of the project to over $255 thousand. Officials say left-over grant funds from FEMA, should absorb the extra cost. The project hang up has been in the construction of a new brick wall, to support the one building left standing…the former Spanky’s Bar building. Special posts must be installed near the foundation to support the wall. Mayor Mike McCann couldn’t say when the work would be completed, as the state still must approve construction plans. His administration wants to put money in the 2022 city budget…to begin planning for a riverfront park in the space vacated by the buildings.