The Performance Contract Management firm Ameresco has identified $14-million in needed building improvements in Marion County-owned buildings.
The company’s Gene Mackey presented their findings at Tuesday night’s Marion County Board meeting.
The identified projects include $7.3-million at the law enforcement center, $2.9-million at the courthouse, nearly $1-million at the public service building and nearly $3-million at the Marion County Highway Department. Ameresco feels the county would be better off constructing a new highway department building at a new location due to the severity of problems at the present site.
Board Vice President and Building Committee Chair Dr. Creighton Engel says with the report they can now move forward on needed work.
“I’m very pleased because they are pretty well doing exactly what we want. They all are a big pool. There are short term, long term, and medium-term projects. Some of these funds will probably not be in the America Rescue Plan, but we will get some of these other projects done and use some of the money that we are saving from the general fund to do some of these other projects.”
The board took the next step at Tuesday night’s meeting in seeking Requests for Proposals from Qualified Providers. Engel says that will allow for refinement of the various projects.
“We are going to have a much better handle on actual proposed cost on this so we can get projects approved through the American Rescue Plan and then start getting things arranged to get bids, drawings, studies, whatever needs to be done to get some of these projects done.”
The Marion County Board is using Bell Weather to review the building projects and determine which are eligible for the federal money. Engel reported the county will be able to keep its quarter-cent sales tax levied for public safety. The $600,000 a year in revenue could be used to issue bonds to pay for some of the law enforcement center repairs that may not be eligible for federal funding.
At the top of the project list is the replacement of the 137 doors within the law enforcement center where parts are no longer available to make repairs. Sheriff Andy Garden says they have had to take parts from some non-essential doors to keep the doors needed for security operational. Mackey estimates the cost of the project at $2-million because the doors will have to be specially made and work will have to be completed while inmates are in the cells.
Engel said bathroom improvements at the courthouse was another priority project. He notes when the Public Service Building was first constructed it had many temporary walls and some offices without doors that have never been addressed.
A special full county board meeting is expected to be called to further review projects once the August 30th deadline for Requests for Proposals passes.
