County reviews design and $11M financing options for new public safety station; no action taken

Amherst County officials presented a conceptual design and financing options for a new combined public safety station on Sept. 16 and the Board of Supervisors took no formal action, instead asking staff for follow-up work sessions on project timing and funding.

Fire Chief Beam introduced Jacob Caldwell of Dominion 7 (architect) and the county's design team. Caldwell presented an 18,000-square-foot single-story station with five apparatus bays, mixed career and volunteer bunk rooms (including separate female and volunteer spaces), a multipurpose training room that can serve as an emergency operations center, space for a sheriff’s office field desk and infrastructure such as a generator pad, diesel tanks and an on-site hydrant.

“...this is a station for today, tomorrow, and the next 40 years,” Chief Beam said, describing continuity-of-operations features that would allow temporary dispatch or emergency operations functions to operate from the station in a disaster.

Estimated costs and schedule

Architect and staff estimates put the building-and-site construction cost at roughly $9.3 million on the current schematic, with allowances and contingencies bringing a subtotal (construction plus allowances) to just over $10.3 million and a total project cost — including AE fees, third-party inspections, furniture and other allowances — to about $11.03 million. The presentation includes a 10% owner’s contingency, a $50,000 furniture allowance and allowances for security, cabling and special inspections. Staff said the estimated A&E appropriation for FY 2026 would be about $607,000, with construction planned for FY 2027 if the board moves forward.

Jacob Caldwell said the project’s site is Lot 5 in the Amelon Commerce Center and noted the facility’s rear-facing apparatus bays would allow two-sided exits for faster response.

Timeline: Chief Beam and staff estimated design and procurement plus construction would take a minimum of about 18 months if work began promptly; chief and architects noted design-build procurement approaches could shorten schedules but require separate board discussion.

Financing options discussed

The county’s financial adviser, Roland Keusch of Davenport, reviewed three financing pathways and their budget impacts:

- Direct bank loan (conduit via EDA): 20-year amortization assumed, planning rate ~5%. Lower overall interest cost but higher annual payments (estimated near $915,000 at peak principal-and-interest) and more near-term budgetary stress; total principal-and-interest roughly $18 million over life of loan.

- Virginia Resources Authority (VRA) pooled financing: 30-year fully amortizing example at about 4.5% yields lower annual payments (~$710,000) and more flexibility to structure repayments; second VRA example used a 30-year structure with a multi-year interest-only period to reduce near-term payments while increasing long-term interest costs slightly.

- USDA Community Facilities (direct USDA loan): taxable/subsidized options discussed; because current taxable rates were relatively high, the USDA option added program costs (including build-America/buy-America and Davis-Bacon wage requirements that can increase construction cost by 3–5%) and required a debt-service reserve fund, making near-term cash flow advantages limited in current markets. The USDA 40-year example raised total lifecycle P&I to roughly $28 million in the presentation.

Keusch emphasized the county faces a debt-service peak tied to recent landfill and other financings during 2027–2031 and that the county will need short-term bridging funds or additional recurring revenue to avoid budget pressure during that period. Keusch showed that once the county passes the 2032 debt-service drop, the public safety project could be absorbed into budgeted debt capacity; the challenge is bridging the near-term peak.

Board reaction and next steps

Supervisors asked for more work sessions to reconcile timing, the county’s capital plan and tax/revenue projections, and to consider trade-offs (e.g., higher near-term payments with lower total interest versus lower payments with higher long-term interest). Board members also raised operational questions about existing rescue-station arrangements and how current facilities would be used after a new station is built.

Chief Beam and the design team said they will provide the presentation files to staff and are available for follow-up. Roland Keusch recommended VRA as offering the most structural flexibility to mitigate near-term cash-flow pressure, while noting a direct bank loan reduces total interest expense if the county can meet larger near-term payments. No approvals or funding decisions were made; the presentation was informational and staff recommended additional work sessions.