Oakdale council authorizes guaranteed maximum price adjustment after higher bids for police, city hall project

The Oakdale City Council on May 26, 2026 authorized an owner change order and a guaranteed maximum price adjustment for bid package two of the police expansion and city hall remodel project after the bids returned higher than expected.

City Administrator Chris reported that higher steel and material costs were a major factor in the increased bids and reminded council that the project has been split into bid packages; he said bid package one previously came in around $8 million and that bid package two was described in the meeting as roughly $22.8 million for this portion of the work. Chris asked council for support to authorize the owner change order and to proceed with additional value engineering to reduce costs where possible.

An owner’s representative, Don Tyson, was present for questions but the council did not pose substantive follow-up to the representative in the record. A council motion to authorize the mayor and city administrator to sign owner change order number 001 (dated May 20, 2026) for bid package two and the associated GMP adjustment carried; there was no recorded opposition.

Councilors also discussed logistics for staff relocations during construction: city staff working at 1584 Hadley Avenue North have been moved to other city facilities, the Oakdale Police Department is temporarily operating out of Fire Station 2, and in-person city hall services (permits, utility payments) are available at the public works campus (3200 Granada Avenue North). The mayor said construction for the police expansion and city hall remodel is expected to begin in June and last about 18 months.

The meeting record includes a handoff between the administrator and the owner’s representative; the meeting transcript contains a garbled rendering of the final contract figure in the motion. The packet and official contract documents should be consulted for the exact adjusted GMP and contract language.