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Commissioners authorize cooling tower contract and redirect state HVAC grant to Justice Center
Summary
Board accepted a state capital grant transfer and awarded a $688,900 contract for rebuilding the Justice Center cooling tower; commissioners discussed moving a previously awarded grant to the Justice Center from the Administration Building and a notice-to-proceed timeline.
Lorain County commissioners on July 29 approved moving a previously awarded state strategic community investment grant and awarded a contract to rebuild the Justice Center cooling tower, steps county leaders said are intended to address urgent HVAC needs at the county jail and Justice Center.
The board amended a prior resolution to change the project name and scope for a $750,000 one-time grant originally authorized for the county administration building; commissioners said they worked with their Columbus delegation to transfer that grant to the Justice Center because its HVAC needs are more urgent. County staff said the Administration Building originally met the state grant profile while the Justice Center did not, and that state officials agreed to the transfer after county outreach.
Separately, commissioners awarded a contract to S.A. Kumo Company Inc., Barberton, Ohio, for $688,900 to rebuild the Justice Center cooling tower. Three bids were received; the lowest bidder was judged noncompliant because it lacked required bonding documentation, and the second-lowest responsive bid from S.A. Kumo was selected. The contract includes an instruction to issue a notice to proceed on or before Aug. 25 and a completion window of 150 days thereafter. County staff said the project will be paid from the county capital improvements account and that retainage will be released at project completion.
Commissioners said the cooling-tower work and related HVAC improvements had been delayed by funding constraints and supply-chain issues; the board noted that conducting the work in cooler months would be preferable, and staff said the projected schedule targets system completion in December. Commissioner Gallagher emphasized that the county sought to avoid using general-fund dollars for the repair and that transferring the grant enabled the Justice Center work to proceed.
Action: The amendment to the prior grant resolution and the contract award to S.A. Kumo Company Inc. were approved by unanimous vote.
Why it matters: County officials described the Justice Center HVAC system as in “much more dire need of major repair” than the Administration Building and said moving the state grant and awarding the contract will allow repairs to proceed without drawing on general-fund balances.
