The Pulaski County Justice Center expansion project is underway. Crews had begun tearing up parts of Meridian Street, according to a photo shared on the county’s Facebook page over the weekend.
That’s to prepare for underground utility installation, according to project liaison Nathan Origer’s update to the county commissioners last week. The Facebook post says some interior demolition will take place this week, so crews can install support columns for the second-floor addition.
Origer reported that increases in materials costs have been offset by low interest rates. “So our annual payments will be back closer to $335,000-$340,000 as we had originally thought and not the $360,000 or $370,000 that Baker Tilly had recently been forecasting,” Origer told the commissioners. “We were lucky enough to sell at a favorable time, got a good interest rate for us, and so that’s looking good.”
He also said about $67,000 in the non-construction budget didn’t have to be used, so it can be added to the contingency cushion.
Additionally, the existing roofing insulation looks good, which should save the county $40,000 in replacement costs. Origer said bids for roofing and the other categories that had to be re-bid are expected to be awarded next week. “For the six categories we re-bid, we had an allowance of $680,145, and we came in almost right at that point,” Origer said.
He said efforts are still underway to find a temporary location for the Prosecutor’s Office while the Justice Center is under construction.
