Sedgwick County staff defend $70,000 architectural bid for new EMS Post 1 as commissioners press for cost detail

Sedgwick County staff presented the recommended architectural and engineering contract for a new EMS Post 1, saying the structure will be approximately 3,000 square feet and that a staff estimate for construction is about $1.3 million, based on the county’s Post 15 project built in 2019.

The county’s recommendation is to accept the low A/E bid after a second round of solicitations; the low bids for design services ranged down to roughly $70,000 while other bidders proposed fees up to about $165,000. Andrew Dilts, a county staff member who addressed the commission by phone, said the recommended firm reduced its price on the second round and remains the low bidder.

Why it matters: Commissioners sought greater detail on the proportion of A/E fees to total project cost and whether the county could reuse a prior preengineered design to lower fees. The discussion focused on cost-control choices for a project…