County moves forward on Eleventh District security fence; paving and easement issues discussed

County building official Mike Zelensky presented the results of a bid opening for a security fence project at the Eleventh District court complex and the commissioners discussed related paving plans, easement rights and funding.

Zelensky said two bids were received and that the low bidder TEGRA Excavating’s price came in near the engineer’s estimate for the fence portion of the project. He described the fence as including a sliding gate, an electric strike on a man-door, and perimeter fencing that will isolate the appeals-court parking lot and remove two sections of guardrail.

Why it matters: The project involves county-owned property and an existing easement the county holds over part of the parking area. Prosecutor Phil Danzo told the board the court has a recorded easement for use of the parking and the county may pay to pave only the portion tied to that easement. "We have a easement on that for the use by the court… because it is our existing easement, we have no problem paying paving it," Danzo said.

Funding and sequencing: Commissioners discussed putting up the fence before paving and noted the county’s capital improvement fund will pay for the fence with approximately $16,000 left over anticipated for subsequent paving requests (split among five entities). Staff said FirstEnergy and the city had waived certain fees and contractor registration for the project.

Next steps: Staff will proceed with award paperwork for the security fence and return with final numbers for paving and a request for the second-phase funding if necessary. Commissioners asked for a full accounting of costs when the second-phase paving work is presented.

Ending: The board indicated support for proceeding with the fence and for coordinating paving payments limited to the county’s easement area; staff will return with final contract documents and cost-sharing specifics.