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Worth County moves forward on two county building projects despite bids above estimates
Summary
The Worth County Board approved plans and recommended contract awards for a new Engineering Conservation Office building and a Secondary Roads maintenance facility. Staff said site work and grading drove bids above engineer estimates; awards were recommended to local contractors.
The Worth County Board of Supervisors approved plans and specifications and moved to award contracts for two county building projects after a public hearing and staff presentations Tuesday.
County staff presented plans for a new 3,600-square-foot Engineering Conservation Office building and site work estimated in planning documents. After a public hearing, the board approved resolution 2025-29 to adopt the plans and specifications for the Engineering Conservation Office building. Staff then recommended awarding the construction contract, noting the successful bid exceeded the engineer's estimate largely because of underestimated site work and grading. The board approved a motion to award the contract (resolution 2025-30).
The board also considered a second project: a new 22,270-square-foot pre-engineered metal Secondary Roads maintenance facility that will include full concrete paving, insulated steel liner, overhead mechanics bays and associated site approaches. Staff described the project scope and the expected notice-to-proceed timing in mid-August. Eight bids were received; staff recommended awarding the contract to Presco Building Services of Cresco, which submitted a low bid of $2,857,181. The board approved resolution 2025-32 to award that contract.
Why it matters: the two projects are county capital investments that will add staff workspace and maintenance capacity. Staff told the board that most of the variance between engineer estimates and bids is tied to site work rather than the building shells, and that the board’s award decisions will move both projects into construction contracting and scheduling.
Staff (county staff) described the Engineering Conservation Office package as “a new 3,600 square foot wood frame building” with site grading and stormwater work included in the contract package. On the cost variance, staff said the difference was “all site work related,” and recommended proceeding with contract awards despite the overrun because the building scope remains unchanged.
On the maintenance facility, staff reported robust interest from bidders and said bids ranged from about 27% below estimate to about 10% below estimate; the recommended low bidder was Presco Building Services. The board moved to approve awarding the contract to Presco and recorded the approval on the record.
Board action and next steps: the board approved the plans and moved to award contracts by recorded motion; staff will finalize contract paperwork and proceed toward construction scheduling and notice-to-proceed dates. Funding source details and final contract amounts beyond the recommended bids were discussed but not fully enumerated in the hearing record.
The board also discussed timing and project-specific site work that contributed to higher-than-estimated bids; staff said they would pursue minor scope and grading adjustments where possible to reduce costs before finalizing contracts.
