Some eye-popping estimates to renovate the old Blair railroad depot that now sits in Lions Park left some Blair City Council members questioning how much the city should obligate itself to pay for as part of the project.

But the president of the group that initially saved the depot earlier this year and engineered its move to the park told the council the actual costs were likely to be much lower.

At the council's meeting on Tuesday, Tom Kranda, president of the Blair Historic Preservation Alliance, said an estimate by Dean Fajen of hgm Associates of $683,000 to renovate the depot and add a 600-foot section of trail surprised him, too.

"My reaction when I first saw it was, 'Holy mackerel!'" Kranda said of the final figure, which is more than double the BHPA's original estimate of less than $250,000 to move and renovate the depot.

But Kranda said he was confident the final cost of the depot project would be nowhere near the $683,000 estimate.

"My belief is when it comes to funding the plan, it will not be $600,000, it will be considerably less than that," he said.

The estimate by Fajen was made in preparation for the city's application for federal Transportation Enhancement Program grant money that is administered by the Nebraska Department of Roads. The lengthy discussion on the depot came as the council considered a resolution supporting the TEP grant application.

The program gives grants to fund up to 80 percent of qualifying projects around the state. Because the old depot is located near the old Lincoln Highway and because of its proximity to the developing trail system in Blair, NDOR officials encouraged the city to apply for the funds with the aim of making the depot a kind of a center where the new trail and the historic highway and railroad meet.

Up to $500,000 could be available for the depot project from the state, leaving a local match of $183,000 if the hgm estimate were used.

City administrator Rod Storm said city officials asked Fajen for the estimate because the BHPA's original estimates "did not look realistic."

But he and several others reiterated that the final cost is likely to be less and by approving the resolution, the council was not obligating the city to pay for the entire 20 percent of the local match.

Storm said the grant application has to be made through the city, but both he and Kranda said the BHPA planned to raise money to pay for most of the local matching money, if the grant were approved.

Some council members said they were shocked at the architect's estimate for the depot and that they did not want to commit the city too much in the plan.

Councilman Gary Fanoele noted that the city already has pledged $25,000 to the project and he would support paying $42,000 for the 600-foot trail extension, "but that's all I support."

Councilman John Abbott agreed.

"I've got some real problems with what's in front of me," Abbott said in reference to Fajen's estimate. "At no point in time did I have any illusions that we would be looking at these kinds of numbers."

Phil Green, assistant city administrator, told the council it could challenge the BHPA to come up with most of the local matching funds through fund raising, if the grant were approved. He again noted that approving the resolution did not obligate the city to the 20 percent match, nor even to accept any grant funds that might be approved.

It was simply a necessary step in the process of applying for the grant, Green said.

Councilmen Jon Stewart and Lloyd Scheve spoke in favor of the grant resolution.

Stewart said the renovated depot could greatly enhance the quality of life in Blair.

"You have to have a balanced community," he said.

As he had in an earlier meeting, Scheve referred to the old depot as an "ugly duckling," but said the community "would be hard-pressed to turn this ugly duckling into a swan without state and federal money."

After the lengthy discussion, Stewart introduced the resolution supporting the grant application and it passed 6-2, with Fanoele and Councilman Mike Biffar voting against it.