Change Orders, Civility Pledge Approved by Council

Township council approved multiple change orders last week—totaling roughly $38,000—for ongoing athletic field projects. They are: 

• Wesley Bishop North, $5,314.32 — This change order was needed after LandTek, the firm installing the turf field (as well as other improvements to the park), accidentally cut both an electrical line and an irrigation line while excavating a water retention basin. Township manager Scott Carew said neither line was shown on the as-builts (i.e. the drawings that show existing field conditions). "This is one of those mistakes that pops up when you're doing a large project," he said. "This is why you have contingencies in the budget." The change order will cover the cost of relocating the irrigation line and the cost of bringing in an electrician to install a temporary generator—which was donated by a private citizen, along with the gas to run it—to provide light to the street hockey rink. 

• Pryor Park, $6,267.50/$4,887.50 — These change orders will cover costs associated with various lighting improvements for the baseball fields at Pryor Park. The $4,887.50 order is being paid for by the Moorestown Youth Baseball Federation.

• Jeff Young/Maple Dawson parks, $21,900.18 — Council approved this change order to cover the cost of installing temporary pole casings for the new lights at both parks. The contractor hit groundwater hit groundwater only 5 feet down, and the poles need to go 12-14 feet down, the township engineer explained. The pole casings will circumvent the problem and make it safe to install the lights, Carew said.

Some constituents have been critical of council over the field projects and their associated change orders, to which Mayor Stacey Jordan responded: "We take change orders very seriously, and we want to make sure if they're being asked for, they're absolutely necessary. We're very careful with what we spend our money on."

In other business, council members agreed to a "Civility Pledge" introduced by Councilman Greg Newcomer. The overall purpose of the pledge is to ensure interactions among council members—and their constituents—are as amicable and respectful as possible. (Check out the attached PDF to read the language of the pledge in full.)

Also, council moved its April 1 meeting to April 8. Jordan explained that she would have been unable to attend the meeting on the 1st, and it was possible Councilman Phil Garwood would have missed the meeting as well. Since council is expected to introduce the budget at that meeting, Jordan said it was prudent to reschedule.

The meeting will now be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 8, in the IT room at Moorestown High School.