Bedford County officials say juvenile facility project needs about $2.4 million more; morgue addition estimated $220,000

Bedford County officials told the Courthouse and Property Committee on a regular business meeting that updated state requirements, added program space and construction inflation have pushed the county’s juvenile detention project well above earlier estimates, and that adding a small morgue to a related surplus facility will add roughly $220,000.

County architect Mark Klein of Klein Sweeney said the county began work on a juvenile facility more than four years ago, stopped the project, then resumed design work within the past several months. “We price cut about $2,000,000 out of the structure,” Klein said, adding the team used value-engineering to reduce cost without sacrificing the building’s long-term performance. Klein said new state codes increased required square footage — notably separation and outdoor-space requirements — and that mechanical, plumbing and electrical costs for this small, highly serviced building were substantially higher than for standard school…