Commissioners fault prior project management as courthouse and capital projects overrun budgets

Sumner County officials at the April 6 commission meeting reported continuing problems with project documentation, contract irregularities left from prior administrations and significant cost increases on the new courthouse and related capital projects.

Finance and capital-projects staff introduced Scott, a newly hired project and graphics specialist, and said they have found disorganized paper and electronic records while assembling contracts, purchase orders and backup files. "The documents are not in any order," Scott told commissioners. Staff noted an outstanding vendor invoice of $81,100 tied to a 2021 project where contract roles were unclear; the vendor performed work and is now requesting payment while paperwork and a purchase order had not been completed.

Discussion highlights Commissioners raised several management problems: missing purchase orders tied to completed vendor work, projects that were ready to bid but were never put out to bid, and the courthouse project’s escalating costs. One commissioner said architectural and planning fees and subsequent cost increases have added “millions” to the courthouse budget since 2019. Staff said the county had $2 million programmed in FY25 for courtroom work and that they were assessing whether existing architectural plans could be repurposed.

ARPA and allocation status Staff said ARPA-funded items had been “overallocated on paper” per a consultant’s recommendation, meaning some items were approved on paper but would be removed from ARPA if final numbers required reallocation to the county’s capital budget. The finance director said Westmore EMS and several other recipients have been paid or have documentation in place; specific totals will be provided in monthly reports.

Franklin Street and storm-drain project Staff and commissioners discussed Franklin Street work that includes separate utility and storm-drain components and noted coordination with the City of Gallatin and multiple contractors. Commissioners urged staff to prioritize bidding for a storm-drain project that staff said would be complicated by existing underground utilities (gas and century-old sewer lines) and to coordinate closely with city engineer David Kellogg.

Process changes and direction Commissioners encouraged the finance director to prepare a concise monthly project summary for commission packets showing ARPA allocations, outstanding POs and contract statuses. They also said the finance department should take a lead role in driving stalled projects to bid and ensure completed projects include complete contract and procurement documentation to avoid vendor-payment arrears.

Quotable "The documents are not in any order," Scott said of legacy files found in the county archives. Commissioner concerns about prior oversight were blunt: "Cost have ballooned," one commissioner said of the courthouse work.

Ending Commissioners did not approve new appropriations at the session but instructed staff to return in February with revised project lists, vendor invoices needing action and a plan for preventing similar procurement lapses going forward.