Jim Thorpe Borough is looking at bank financing to help cover two upcoming projects, one of which could cost more than originally expected.

Bids were opened Thursday for both stormwater improvements to the rear of Memorial Hall and the stabilization of a cracked portion of a wall along High Street.Two bidders submitted prices for the stormwater work, with the lowest coming in at $237,850 from RGC Development of Bath.The bid was 44 percent higher than the latest engineer's estimate of $165,000."There is a 60-day time period in which to decide whether to award the project so I think it's something the borough should think about before it moves forward," Matt Boggs of Entech Engineering told council Thursday.The project includes installation of a detention basin to the rear of Memorial Hall. A permanent drainage swale would be constructed down the embankment to Germantown Road.Hazleton Site Contractors was the second bidder at $426,974."That much of a disparity makes me nervous about the first bid," Councilman Jay Miller said.Bid results were better for the borough on the High Street wall stabilization.Axis Stabilization bid $307,365 for a project initially expected to cost more than $500,000.Water is seeping inside and busting the wall out.Earlier this year, officials estimated the crack has grown from 2 inches to around 6 or 7 inches and were concerned about the potential for collapse.Around 200 feet of the wall will be repaired through the project, if council awards the contract.The borough requested proposals for $700,000 from area banks to help finance the work."I don't know that we want to borrow that entire amount or supplement with money already budgeted," Miller said.Mauch Chunk Trust offered a 2.6 percent interest rate over 10 years.Council asked Borough Manager Maureen Sterner to see if Mauch Chunk would be willing to waive a clause that prohibits the borough from paying off the loan early.Council meets again next Thursday at 6:30 p.m.