Peoria County committee approves $64,250 façade change order, defers $38,650 item

Peoria County Infrastructure Committee approved a $64,250 change order for work on the courthouse façade and voted to defer a separate $38,650 charge after members said the latter resulted from an engineering-specification oversight.

The decision came during the committee's meeting when staff described two distinct additional items tied to an ongoing façade project by contractor Western. Kyle, a county staff member leading the presentation, told the committee the extra work included replacing window seals on the courthouse's older portion and caulking around the newer addition.

Committee member Terry moved to divide the question so the committee could vote separately on the two amounts; Sharon seconded. "I would make the motion in hope of a second that we divide the question and approve only the $64,250 of this change," Terry said, citing concerns about accountability for the $38,650 portion. The motion to split carried, and the committee then voted 6-1 to approve the $64,250 portion.

Members said the $64,250 portion largely reflected work staff expected to be added once contractors inspected seals up close, while the $38,650 reflected work committee members believed ought to have been included in the original engineering specifications. "The engineering company that prepared the specs did not write them in a way consistent with our expectations," Terry said during debate, adding that the county should press the engineering firm for accountability.

Committee members and staff discussed logistics and cost risk if the smaller item were delayed, including scaffold remobilization and mobilization costs. Kyle said staff believed scaffold repositioning had been included in the contractor's current schedule and that an additional mobilization charge was not expected; he also said staff would pursue further research and conversations with Western if the committee requested them.

After approving the $64,250 item, the committee considered the $38,650 piece. Dylan moved, seconded by Mister Rosenbaum, to defer that portion to the next committee meeting to give staff leverage to negotiate with the engineering firm; the motion to defer carried (majority in favor, two nays). The committee directed staff to pursue meetings with the contractor and the engineering firm and to report back with options and cost implications.

Committee members repeatedly stressed they did not want to unduly delay the overall renovation timeline, noting landscaping and other plaza work depend on timely completion, but they said they also wanted to avoid paying for errors that originated in the project specifications. Several members noted the engineering contract for the specifications was modest (committee members cited roughly $28,000) and warned that firms' errors-and-omissions recovery can be limited.

The committee did not set a firm refund demand or a specific negotiated offset; staff was directed to continue discussions and return with recommendations at a future meeting.

The county continues façade work with Western on site; the committee approved the immediate $64,250 work so contractors could proceed while reserving the right to seek remedies or concessions related to the $38,650 item.