The Lake County Board of County Commissioners approved an amended professional services agreement with Larson Engineering to continue engineering work on a planned 24-unit townhome project, with the approval made subject to pending legal review.

Jackie Wheelahan, housing program manager, and Tom Larson of Larson Engineering provided an update to the board on progress at the site, including completed foundations and additional grading and soil testing. Wheelahan said soil testing returned favorable results on contaminant concentrations and that Oakwood (the developer) has shared certain engineering costs, reducing some of the county’s planned expenses.

Wheelahan told the commissioners that the project initially anticipated separate plats for each building but the city has allowed an alternative approach: a single townhome plat per block rather than individual plats per building. That change reduces survey costs that had been budgeted.

Wheelahan said the budget included a placeholder for survey costs and related engineering work; staff identified roughly $42,000 reserved in the contract budget for anticipated expenses. She described the amendment as a formality tied to the original professional services agreement and said the request remained within the originally anticipated 2025 housing expense funding.

A commissioner moved to approve the amended professional services agreement with Larson Engineering pending legal review; the motion carried on an affirmative vote called by the chair. No individual roll-call votes were read on the recording.

Staff said project pacing remains active and that townhome units and related materials are expected to arrive in early November, with continued coordination between county staff, the city and the developer.