The Warren City Council agreed last week to borrow $3.6 million to pay off two existing loans and throw the rest at repairs to the Clark St. Parking Garage.

Finalizing the paperwork during a special meeting on Monday drew the ire of a member of council.

Wendy McCain highlighted a report on the garage that said $2.4 million in repairs would buy five to 10 years for the garage but said the debt ordinance headed to the state indicated the repairs would last longer.

City Manager Nancy Freenock said after paying off the existing loans “any excess” from the $3.6 million “will be put into the garage.”

She said the $2.4 million estimate from two years ago is closer to $3 million in today’s dollars and told the council that city DPW crews have been making some in-house repairs to the garage.

McCain continued to hammer on the inconsistency between the report and the ordinance to the state, which was the item council took action on Monday.

“These are engineering estimates,” Department of Public Works Director Mike Holtz told the council of the timeframe. “(We) have to do something. We’re there. The debt service works with the budget.”

McCain said the city should provide accurate information to the state; Holtz said he believes it is accurate.

“We have city staff taking into (consideration) a study and additional information,” Mayor Dave Wortman said.

He said her opposition would be something she would have to address “at her level,” emphasizing that the decision to borrow the money is settled.

The council spent some time discussing other potential funding sources that could increase the amount the city invests in the garage.

“In my analysis of the funding we have available, (we have) $1.7 million in in RACP (Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program) funds that could be put toward the garage,” Freenock said, subject to the state Office of Budget’s willingness to approve that use.

The council also entertained later in Monday’s meeting a $1 million dollar grant application from state gaming revenue

“Do we have that much work to do in the garage? The answer is yes,” she said. “There’s much more than $2.4 million in work that needs to be done in the garage.”

She said the city could also use the Parking Fund to help pay back the loan “to the extent the parking fund is solvent.”

That gaming revenue funding stream requires applications to be filed in just over a month.

Freenock said the “applications are time intensive” but that this is an “especially opportune time to apply for funds that otherwise might be difficult to fund.”

She brought several projects that have been on the radar for years and asked the council to help prioritize the application process.

The projects include $1 million for the parking garage, $1 million for Mulberry Park, $150,000 for a miracle ball field, $1 million at Betts Park for an all-weather building, $1 million for riverfront development and $750,000 for an elevator and operational improvements at the fire hall.

There’s $100 million available statewide, Freenock said.

The council in a 6-1 vote prioritized the projects in the following order: Garage, Mulberry, miracle field, fire station, riverfront and Betts Park.