Sheriff's office remodel progresses; county OKs $152,870 evidence-locker purchase

Rockwall County received construction updates for its sheriff's office remodel on Sept. 23 and approved a vendor quote for evidence lockers totaling $152,870.

Owner's representatives said the sheriff's office renovation is performing under budget and is back to work after a permitting delay. Construction work described in the meeting included interior partitions and framing, plus mechanical, electrical and plumbing work; project staff said they are tracking change orders that will be returned to the court for approval.

Separately, commissioners approved a purchase of evidence lockers from Southwest Solutions Group for $152,870. Commissioner Stacy moved to approve the quote and Commissioner Gallano seconded; the court passed the motion 5-0.

Why it matters: Evidence storage and secure chain-of-custody systems are critical to law-enforcement operations; the purchase will be funded through the project's furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) allowances and will be reconciled as part of the guaranteed maximum price change-order process.

Project status and next steps: The owner's representative reported the security/detention partitions are being installed; schedule impact has been reduced and, if progress continues, the earlier January substantial-completion target could move earlier. Several permit-driven changes generated additional ASI (architect's supplemental instruction) items; the design and construction teams are pricing those changes and expect to bring change orders to the court at a future meeting.

Speakers cited in this article are limited to those on the public record in the transcript.