Cole County approves $119,000 design proposal for shop expansion to accommodate larger vehicles

Cole County commissioners approved moving forward with a professional services proposal from Architects Alliance to design an 84-by-70-foot addition to the county shop at the Monticello facility and to renovate portions of the existing shop.

Staff said the project will raise a portion of the existing shop ceiling from 16 feet to 25 feet to accommodate larger fleet vehicles, add a wash bay, install air conditioning and an oil-burning furnace, replace a deteriorated drain and install an oil separator and containment. The design work proposed by Architects Alliance includes plans and specifications sufficient to reach an approximately 95% bid-ready construction package and includes a site survey and geotechnical study.

The consultants’ fee proposal is $106,890 plus owner direct costs for a site survey and geotech at about $2,110 and a contingency or other costs totaling roughly $10,000, for a grand total staff presented as $119,000. Staff said the county had budgeted $100,000 in the 806 sales tax capital improvements line and the design total is slightly over that amount, but the county’s 5-year capital improvements bucket has had revenue above projections.

Commissioners discussed which sales tax bucket should pay the design cost — the 85% road/bridge allocation versus the 15% county facilities allocation — and asked staff to clarify allocations during next budget discussions. Commissioners approved proceeding with awarding the design contract to Architects Alliance and asked staff to return with contract documents for signature.

No construction contract was awarded at this meeting; the action authorizes design and preliminary work only.