The construction of the new Habersham County animal shelter has stalled yet again, even with valued engineering cost saving measures. The delay will add at least another four to five months to the project.
Tabled
It occurred during the commission’s regular meeting Monday evening. Commissioner Dustin Mealor made the motion to table a change order request in the amount of $125,500 for the value engineering design changes.
During the presentation for the change order request, Commissioner Bruce Harkness asked Public Works Director /Capital Projects Manager Jerry Baggett, “Why are we having to pay $125,000?”
Baggett explained that the county already has a full set of complete plans based on the original $10 million project. However, those plans do not have the design changes from the value engineering. “You have to have a set of drawings in order for a contractor to bid the work,” he said. Baggett added, “In order to take all of those things out of the project, you have to redraw those things”.
Commissioner Bruce Palmer expressed his frustration with the project. “I want this done as much as anybody but we need to settle on what we’re doing, period, and quit paying money to change the plans only to turn around and change them again,’ he said.
Palmer continued, “If it takes the board having a work session, that we get in a room and nobody leaves until it’s done.”
Apologies
Mealor gave his apologies to the commission. “I apologize. I was supposed to remove this from the agenda,” he said.
He explained that due to some of the discussion during the work session about the animal shelter and the need for some clarification, he meant to remove it.
“It’s my fault. I didn’t stop you because the community needs to know what the current status is, and the changes, and such,” Mealor told Baggett. He added, “As such, if it would please the commission, I would like to make a motion to table this until the November meeting.” Harkness second the motion.
“Can we have a work session sometime between now and the meeting?” Palmer asked. The commission agreed.
Akins explained that he felt that they had a consensus from the board during the work session to not move forward with something that was not expandable. During the work session, it was discussed that some of the design changes would remove the ability to expand the animal shelter in the future.
Harkness asked Baggett in the meantime, to see if the architect could reduce the cost.
Mealor explained to Baggett, “It’s a big expense. We’re elected to be responsible with taxpayers’ money.”
Akins reminded the commission that there was a motion and a second. The commission voted unanimously to table the matter till the November meeting.
Added delay
The commission’s delay is not the only delay on the horizon. The $125,500 charge was for Croft and Associates to add in the value engineering to the plans and redraw the schematics so the county could put the project out to bid. That redrawing alone will take approximately three to four months to complete.
The commission had previously hoped to break ground for the shelter this past summer. With the new anticipated delays, it will be next spring before the project can move forward.
