The community Green space approved by voters in March was officially named “Tower Center at Unity Square” during a City Council meeting on Monday. The council voted unanimously to approve the name following a presentation and motion by Ward 3 Councilor Jim Curd.
A vote on naming the space was postponed during a meeting two weeks ago, when council members voted to approve design elements for the project. Given the working name of the “Tower Green,” the project consists of constructing a public gathering space between the Price Tower and the Bartlesville Community Center, where Silas Street is currently located. Voters approved $1.7 million in funding for the project in the March General Obligation Bond Election, and the “Tower Green Design Committee” was created by the City Council to oversee the design, budget and naming of the space — a five-month process that concluded recently.
The City Council approved design elements for the project during a Nov. 5 council meeting but postponed voting on a name for the space after some citizens objected to a recommendation from the committee to name it “The Green at Unity Square.” The committee, co-chaired by Curd and Ward 4 Councilor Alan Gentges, voted 7-0 on the name in an effort to show “unity” between the Price Tower and the Bartlesville Community Center, which will share equally in marketing, maintaining and programming for the space, without showing a preference for one organization over the other.
But in a meeting held earlier this month some citizens pointed to a survey that was conducted early in the information gathering process asking the public to submit possible names for the space, with many indicating they preferred the working name, “Tower Green.” Bartlesville resident Fletcher Daniels addressed the council in the Nov. 5 meeting to announce that he had obtained 51 signatures on a petition to retain the “Tower Green” name. The council elected to postpone the vote to allow more discussion on the matter.
On Monday, Curd unveiled an alternative to both names, presenting a logo and a motion to vote on naming the space “Tower Center at Unity Square.” Curd told the council the name represents both the Price Tower and BCC and keeps the “unity” element recommended by the committee.
“The idea was was to try to bring the two together,” Curd said, noting the roles of the BCC and Price Tower in bringing the project to fruition.
In a separate but related discussion concerning the Green project, during the workshop portion of the meeting Water Utilities Director Terry Lauritsen, a Registered Professional Engineer who has been assigned the task of overseeing the Green project for the City of Bartlesville, presented the council with information on the pros and cons of hiring a construction management consultant for the project.
Pros include the ability to obtain reliable cost estimates for construction services, aid in plan reviews and development of pre-qualification packages, as well as scheduling and contractor coordination, Lauritsen said. The cost, roughly $150,000 to $170,000 is a disadvantage, he said. However, the cost is included in the project’s budget, however, so no additional funds would need to be sought.
Project consultant and Price Tower Director Scott Ambler, who is providing architecture services pro-bono for the project, said the budget contains $130,000 in contingency funds as well as 10-12 percent for scheduling and management. He also said the hiring of these types of consultants are common-place for large construction projects.
“This is the only way we’ve done construction (projects) for the past 10 or 15 years,” he said. “Everybody’s working on the same team.”
No action was taken during the meeting because the agenda item was for presentation only, but the issue will likely be considered for approval during the regularly scheduled Dec. 3 City Council meeting.
Next steps for the green project include the completion of a long-scheduled drainage project involving the area, which must be completed prior to any construction at the space, and the establishment of a committee/board representing both organizations to oversee all operations, including performance bookings, marketing and maintenance.
Construction will likely take nine to 12 months to complete.