COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – The Coldwater City Council approved a bid of just under $727,000 on Monday night that was submitted by Parrish Excavating of Quincy for the relocation and construction of four youth softball and baseball fields in Heritage Park.
Bids from Parrish and Elzinga Volkers of Holland and Coldwater were opened April 17, 2018.
While Parrish had the low bid of just over $879,000, it was in excess of the available budget.
Parrish agreed to make what turned out to be about $182,000 worth of changes in order to bring the costs down. The city staff recommended an additional $18,000 for permanent outfield fencing on the two western fields.
The new ball fields on Northshore Drive are being put it because the current Little League diamonds will be the future site of a new fourth and fifth grade school for Coldwater Community Schools following the approval last November of a millage and bonding proposal.
The current Little League diamonds reverted back to the City of Coldwater in the fall of 2016 when the Coldwater Little League Board voted to dissolve. The land now belongs to Coldwater Community Schools.
In other business, the City Council introduced ordinances for first reading and scheduled public hearings as well as final action for their May 24, 2018 meeting on a pair of rezoning requests that were given positive recommendations by the City Planning Commission last week.
One is for the proposed rezoning of over 20 acres of land on East Garfield across from the Branch County Fairgrounds and the Dearth Community Center so that a 102 unit manufactured housing development called The Enclave at Tall Grass can be located there.
The other rezoning request for a proposed small grocery and specialty goods store at 93 Park Avenue that would serve the nearby Arabic neighborhood was barely approved by the Planning Commission on a 4-3 vote last week.
