Commissioners spend half a million dollars for new EOC

The Putnam County Commissioners voted Thursday to accept more than half a million dollars in bids for construction of the emergency operations center.

About a third of the work - $169,000 -- will go to Putnam County contractors. The largest sum of in-county contacts will go to Reelsville-based Criss & Hutcheson, which will do the rough carpentry, framing, drywall and painting for the facility.

"I really like seeing those local guys," said Commissioner Jim Baird.

All of the bids accepted Thursday came in below Indianapolis-based Pyramid Architecture's original estimate. Combined, the contract amount is nearly $23,000 less than the $540,000 budget the firm submitted.

The largest single contract awarded was for $168,000 to Indianapolis firm Custom Concrete for cast-in-place concrete walls.

Three of the contracts had only a single bidder and came in at more than the estimated cost. The electrical and concrete slab work will be re-submitted for bids immediately, said Terry Burnworth, the president of Pyramid. The contract for the fire suppression system can be re-submitted in February, he added.

The original scope of the electrical work required the contractors to buy and install equipment that totaled about $100,000 before getting paid for the job, Burnworth said. This prohibited most small electricians from bidding for the contract, he said.

As a result, the county will purchase the equipment through its own bidding process and narrow the requirements.

This will hopefully attract several local bidders, since the contract now requires fewer resources to complete, Burnworth said.

Construction has already begun on the $2.9 million emergency operations and communications center.

Burnworth also updated commissioners on a snag construction crews encountered while installing the sewer lines to the facility. Because of difficulty digging in to lay the pipe, the project will now cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $105,000, he told the board. That's more than two and a half times more than the $39,000 originally projected.

Fortunately, Burworth said, the project has enough cushion in its budget to handle to problem, though this setback will eat up nearly all of the surplus.

Last week, the board met to open bids for the project. Here is the list complete list of 33 bids they had to consider:

* Wabash Valley - $25,717, package 2A, concrete, plus additional miscellaneous fees of $6,410,

* Naviaux Brothers - $64,425, package 3S, concrete slabs,

* Walker Construction - $288,700, package 3S and 3W, combined concrete work,

* Ferrand Concrete - $194,334, package 3W, concrete walls,

* Custom Concrete - $167,626, package 3W, concrete walls,

* Criss and Hutcheson - $32,777, package 6C, carpentry and framing, plus additional miscellaneous fees of $4,000,

* 3-D Professional - $76,980, packages 6C, 9A, 9D, carpentry, acoustical ceiling and drywall,

* 3-D Professional - $78,800, package 8D, doors and windows,

* Steve Bunten Construction - $36,265, package 7R, roofing,

* Associated Roofing Materials - $54,233, package 7R, roofing,

* Hinshaw Roofing - $43,000, package 7R, roofing,

* Horning Roofing - $35,902, package 7R, roofing,

* Insley Systems - $35,600, package 7R, roofing,

* Criss and Hutcheson - $118,780, package 8D, doors and windows,

* Criss and Hutcheson - $9,394, package 9A ceilings,

* Perry Acoustics - $5,984, package 9A, ceilings,

* Criss and Hutcheson - $17,818, package 9D, drywall,

* Jack Laurie Flooring - $8,195, package 9F, flooring,

* Classic Flooring - $5,270, package 9F, flooring,

* Criss and Hutcheson - $20,850, package 9P, painting,

* Custis Painting - $32,562, package 9P, painting,

* Bill Lawrence Company - $21,700, package 9P, painting, plus additional miscellaneous fees of $950.

* Midwest Computer Accessories - $32,430, package 10, access flooring,

* G3 Technologies - $34,500, package 10, access flooring,

* FSSI - $40,305, package 15F fire suppressant system,

* Ideal Heating and Cooling - $65,400, package 15H, HVAC

* McAllister Co. - $55,900, package 15H, HVAC,

* Commercial Air - $111,900, package 15H, 15P, HVAC and plumbing,

* B & L Sheet Metal - $47,600, package 7R, roofing,

* B & S Plumbing and heating - $95,000, packages 15H, 15P, HVAC and plumbing,

* Justin Dorsey Plumbing - $27,258, package 15P, plumbing,

* Kerkoff Plumbing - $27,700, package 15P, plumbing,

* Miller-Eads - $257,770, package 16E, electrical, plus additional miscellaneous fee of $700.

Assistant Editor Adam Coates contributed to this story.