The Lake Placid Town Council will consider a $163,683.49 budget amendment Monday for systems and work needed to complete the new Police Department building. Approval would increase the project budget from $2,085,421.60 to $2,249,105.09. The request includes $37,392 for a generator, $34,181 for cameras, $38,463 for electronic door access, $25,000 for wiring and $27,952.10 to change the electrical service from three-phase to single-phase. Moving donated furniture is also included.
SEMCO Construction originally bid $2,299,000. The contract was reduced to $1,892,697.60 through “value engineering,” deleted items and costs assigned to other Town funds. Adding $192,724 in utility work brought the project to $2,085,421.60. The proposed amendment would place the project $49,894.91 below SEMCO’s original bid.
The amendment says the security and access-control systems were “originally assumed to be included” but were later removed and deferred. Their exclusion was discussed publicly before the council approved the project. During the Nov. 10, 2025 presentation, then-Town Attorney Bert Harris said security and access control were outside the construction price and would return the following year as an “operating-budget expansion.” Charlette Rodriguez was Town Administrator at the time, and the police station item was presented jointly by Rodriguez, Harris, Police Chief Mark Schneider, the utility director and project engineer.
The council approved the police station funding Nov. 17 by a 3-2 vote. The timing now places the amendment near the end of the fiscal year, although the need for separate security funding was identified during the November presentation. Several proposed purchases also exceed the Town’s $10,000 competitive-bidding threshold. The camera, access-control and wiring estimates are dated Aug. 14, 2025, and the amendment does not identify the procurement method that will be used. Competitive bids could produce prices higher or lower than the estimates.
The amendment also reverses the plan to move the Police Department’s approximately 20-year-old generator. The Town now says it cannot adequately power the building. Separately, the electrical plans are being changed from three-phase to single-phase service at a cost of $27,952.10.
One calculation remains unclear. The generator, cameras, access control, wiring and electrical change total $162,988.10, leaving $695.39 for furniture relocation. The attached moving proposal ranges from $14,850 to $17,250.
The council meeting begins at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Lake Placid Town Hall. Meetings are streamed on the Town’s YouTube Channel.
