GULF SHORES, Ala. — The donation of a hood system for the kitchen in the new Sims Park concession stand will cost Gulf Shores an extra $12,000 in design costs to accommodation the equipment.

Public works director Mark Acreman said the new system greatly enhances the possibilities of what can be done at the building for food service.

“Through the process of designing the new Sims Park concession stand that is under construction, we got a donation of a hood system which allowed us to move an outside grill system inside,” he said. “So we had to redesign the HVAC system and electrical system, gas lines as well as the wall between the kitchen area and the rest of the building.”

The City Council OK’d the new expenditures at Monday’s regular meeting, but members had questions and concerns about the change order.

“You know I don’t like change orders before we start breaking ground,” Councilwoman Carolyn Doughty told Acreman.

The changes included taking out the covered area for outdoor grilling and reconfiguring the inner workings of the building.

“We had to redesign the whole plan plus remove and outdoor structure and change the roof line,” Acreman said. “It was a pretty substantial overhaul however those type of systems are very expensive and it’s given us an opportunity to make the facility a lot nice than it was before. Everything will be inside instead of having a stand-alone structure outside. It’s all indoors, will have a full kitchen and require health department inspection now.

“So we had to redesign the HVAC system and electrical system, gas lines as well as the wall between the kitchen area and the rest of the building.”

Acreman said the donated system is worth about $15,000 to $20,000. The additional work would push the entire project slightly higher than budget projections.

“The overall budget was $350,000 and we came in at $337,000,” he said. “There’s some additional work we will be doing on site, some electrical work we are having to do as well so we will end up over budget slightly. We’re trying to bring that Sims Park athletic facility up to another level it’s not been in the past.”

One of those expressing concerns about the change was Councilman Jason Dyken.

“A 50 percent increase in a design for a building seems like a hefty chunk to me,” Dyken said. “If it was such a good idea to have a hood system, shouldn’t we have designed it that way to start with? It’s an example of how when we are looking at projects for the city we need to think about implications and look at all avenues before we present the budget.”

There were other items the council voted on, and passed, during the session that involved change orders on bids already let by the city including additions to the new track and its accoutrements at the Sportsplex.

“We need to be cautious in the expansion of our bids because the expansion of designs and bids typically includes the expansion of the cost of buildings,” Dyken said. “It’s a slippery slope that we get on when we start always wanting better and better things and being able to afford them.”

Some council members thought the changes wouldn’t cost extra because the changes would include cutting of the outdoor area.

“The discussion at the time was we were going to eliminate as much as we spend by eliminating that covered area,” Councilman Phillip Harris said. “There was a lot of money in that covered area that was proposed. I had no idea we’d spend that much on (design) fees to accomplish putting a hood system in there. If we’re over budget maybe we need to look at the project and see where we can cut that money out of there.”