County facilities manager outlines stepped-up preventative maintenance, Justice Center plumbing costs drive budget increase
Loading...
Summary
Flathead County presented a maintenance budget that grows mainly to cover Justice Center plumbing work and increased contracted HVAC/controls maintenance with Johnson Controls; staff emphasized bringing more work in-house and filling openings to reduce long-term costs.
Flathead County staff on April 29 told commissioners the facilities maintenance budget is rising primarily because of recent plumbing repairs at the Justice Center and planned increases to a Johnson Controls service contract for preventative HVAC maintenance.
The county’s facilities representative said crews are shifting from strictly emergency repairs toward preventative maintenance across campus buildings. “We’re working to pick that up and not just do stuff that’s, you know, right now, emergency stuff, but try to have time to do preventative maintenance,” the facilities manager told commissioners.
Staff said the operating budget increased roughly $223,240 overall, with about $150,000 earmarked for Justice Center plumbing work (pipe realignment and related repairs) and roughly $55,000 allocated to an enlarged Johnson Controls contract so the vendor can carry out preventative HVAC maintenance rather than reacting to failures. Janitorial supplies were increased to $20,000 to support an expanded in-house custodial program and a new custodial supervisor.
Personnel and CIP
The maintenance group reported it was down about 4.6% in staffed positions because of turnover and is actively recruiting. Staff said the department has taken several services in-house that had been contracted — drywall, painting and custodial work at some buildings — which they expect will reduce recurring contractor costs. The department also reported taking on custodial responsibilities for three buildings previously contracted out; associated labor costs are charged to the consuming departments (landfill, transportation, records preservation, health department, etc.).
Capital and transfers
Staff noted a $300,000 CIP transfer and said the department reviewed the CIP line-by-line to ensure major items are captured (roofs, HVAC systems, generators). Commissioners asked whether removing the Justice Center plumbing work from the maintenance budget would materially change the percentage increase; staff said that work accounted for most of the apparent increase.
Commissioners expressed support for the preventative-maintenance approach and directed staff to continue recruitment to fill vacancies so the department can expand in‑house work.
