Cole County Commission hears updated budget and design options for proposed juvenile center; $14 million construction target remains

Cole County commissioners moved a discussion about a proposed new juvenile center ahead in Tuesday’s meeting after the project team presented revised plans intended to meet a construction target of $14,000,000.

Curtis of Architects Alliance told the commission the design team has reworked the building to reduce square footage and trim expensive features to meet the previously agreed $14 million construction target. The team shifted the building footprint, eliminated some gymnasium space, reduced building elevation and reconfigured bump-outs to cut earthwork and site costs. The architect said a recent site rework from Bartlett & West reduced site expenses further and that a construction manager (Nappholtz/Napholtz) was producing a cost estimate.

Commissioners and staff reviewed the project’s cost components. Design fees already under contract were cited as $860,000. The county had paid roughly $402,250.69 for site acquisition, according to the presentation. The construction manager’s pre-construction lump-sum was stated as $34,000; once construction starts, staff said the construction manager’s ongoing “general conditions” fee would be $34,000 per month plus a 2.2 percent overhead and profit fee on the construction contract.

Commissioners discussed furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E). The design team estimated loose FF&E (office furniture, computers, copiers, not built-in secure furnishings or kitchen equipment) at roughly $250,000 to $350,000 depending on specification; staff noted that reusing serviceable existing county furniture would reduce that estimate.

A central budget discussion focused on the number of secured cells. The current design targets eight secure cells to meet a full program; commissioners and juvenile staff debated whether six cells would be sufficient. Juvenile staff reported that two of three secure cells in use at the county trainer facility have been occupied since January, with a third pending at the time of the meeting; staff said one youth had been certified into the juvenile system the previous day. Commissioners asked for line-item cost comparisons showing the incremental savings from removing one or two cells to inform a decision about reducing capacity. The architect and construction manager agreed to provide detailed cell-level cost numbers at the next presentation.

Several commissioners raised concerns about the overall $14,000,000 price tag and emphasized that long-term operating costs — insurance, utilities, and maintenance — will fall to the county after construction. One commissioner said earlier estimates to renovate and add to the existing trainer center had been around $7,000,000 and asked for comparative analysis.

There was no formal vote or final decision on program size during the meeting. Staff said the team expected a revised cost estimate from the construction manager within days and planned to return to the commission with a breakdown of savings tied to design changes and options to remove cells or other program elements.

Project-specific clarifications provided in the presentation included the scope of what is included in the construction budget (fixed kitchen and secured furnishings are included; loose FF&E is typically owner-purchased) and the distinction between pre-construction lump-sum fees and ongoing construction-phase general-condition fees.