by

Fred Swift

Hamilton County Reporter

(NOTE:  Commentaries by Fred Swift are posted on here as part of a partnership between the Hamilton County Reporter and LarryInFishers.com)

County Commissioners have taken steps to proceed with two major county facility
expansion projects.

An agreement has been signed with Meyer Najem Construction Company
for construction management services on a major addition to the County Government
and Judicial Center.

The multi-million dollar expansion of the 25-year old building will provide more
space for courtrooms, offices and storage.  The addition will be built to the west side
of the existing structure and contain around 100,000 square feet under roof.

County officials had known since the original building was built in 1992 that expansion
would eventually be needed and it was designed so that an addition could
be made. Preliminary design drawings last year show an architecturally pleasing new
west front for the facility.

The agreement with Meyer Najem calls for a fee not to exceed $80,000 for pre-construction
documents. Assuming the project is funded by the County Council, the agreement
will be amended for additional work.  No date has been set for bidding the project
estimated to cost around $23 million.

The council will then vote on funding.  Money is not regarded as a major problem
since the county holds major cash reserves. Bonding is also a likely method
of funding since bonds previously sold by the county are being paid off soon and
new bonds could be sold, resulting in no need for a tax increase.

Another major project in which commissioners have taken a step toward construction, is the expansion of the county jail. Currently overcrowded, the jail building, wich includes the sheriff’s department offices and the 911 communications center, was built to house 296 inmates. Bunks for another 200 has been recommended.

Commissioners have signed an agreement with The Hagerman Group for construction
management on the expansion project. The fee for $40,625 provides for
construction documents, and a proposal for a fee of three percent of construction
costs to manage the project to completion.