The Porter County
Commissioners received word that their bill from Skillman Corporation--the
construction firm acting as the County’s agent for its capital improvement
projects--will be reduced by $320,000.
At the Board of
Commissioners meeting Tuesday, Project Manager for Skillman Scott Cherry
explained where he found the savings. Cherry said he has been working on
planning the staffing and scope of renovations at the Porter County
Courthouse, Expo Center, and the new building planned for the North County
Complex that the County will share with the Portage Township Trustee and the
Portage Food Bank.
“It was my job to
make sure we develop a budget for those projects and a timeline. I always
anticipate the worst-case scenario when it comes to our fees,” Cherry said.
“The savings comes from what I budgeted for our staffing and general
conditions.”
According to
Cherry, the addition to North County will be the most complex project in
terms of staffing. That, and the work on the Expo Center, will require a
Skillman employee working full-time. With other upcoming projects, there is
room for consolidation. Cherry said that Skillman is reducing its fee to the
County by $320,000 considering the new plans for staffing. He said the plans
are “Locked in and ready to go” unless something changes.
Commissioner
President Jeff Good, R-Center, added that the Board pushing for a fast-paced
schedule has helped as well. “We’re pushing the threshold. We’re pushing
these projects a lot. We want to get a lot of shovels in the ground this
fall,” Good said. “If you can compress the schedule, you’re gonna save money
in this game, and that’s what we’re doing here.”
Capital
Improvements Updates
The Board approved
a contract with Amereco, Inc. for environmental consulting that will
determine the safety of the materials used in the construction of the Porter
County Courthouse in Valparaiso. Cherry noted that old buildings can have
hazardous materials such as asbestos in unexpected places like floor tiles
and caulking. Cherry said it is especially important to find anything
hazardous before the windows of the Courthouse are replaced. The cost for
the Valparaiso Courthouse is $1,100 and the North County Courthouse will
also be inspected to the tune of $800.
The old jail
building at 157 Franklin in downtown Valparaiso will become the new Porter
County Annex building, and the design work will be courtesy of
Valparaiso-based Shive-Hattery, in another money-saving move. Cherry
reported that Shive-Hattery took on the design work for the inside of the
jail building and added that work to its existing contract for work on the
Courthouse and Expo Center for nine percent of the construction cost. Cherry
said Shive-Hattery reduced their fees related to the Expo Center when they
added the two new projects to the contract. Combining the work for these
projects with one firm will save about $90,000, Cherry said. Good said the
savings indicate good planning and fiscal management. “I think this proves
that with our team doing these capital improvement projects, we’re also
trying to figure out how we can grab some money back.”
The Board approved
a payment to American StructurePoint for renovation on the administration
center plaza, which was officially opened during a ribbon cutting on June 5.
The Board approved a payment of $31,741.16, leaving a remaining balance of
$25,302.97.