Commissioners press architect on maintenance building design, decline immediate approval

Cheatham County commissioners and staff spent part of their March 17 meeting reviewing plans for a proposed county maintenance building, pressing the architect on interior finishes and storage needs but taking no formal vote to award construction work.

Architect Joshua Wright told the commission he and county staff had reworked drawings and made revisions “that will result in some savings,” but he told commissioners he did not know how large those savings would be “until we go back out to bid.” Wright said he had “made some revisions to the drawings” and that standard interior siding was proposed to protect insulation in service bays.

During discussion, a commissioner asked why the shop area needed finished walls and a ceiling. Wright said the interior siding was “basically the same, screw down exterior siding to be placed on the inside,” a common practice for post-frame buildings to protect insulation and to prevent damage from woodworking and metal work. He added that electrical wiring would be run in conduit and that the interior finish was intended to protect wall insulation, wiring and plumbing from sparks or abrasion.

Commissioners also asked whether jail maintenance staff would be able to store supplies in the new maintenance building. The mayor and other participants clarified that the new jail includes office and maintenance space and that the jail’s maintenance lead had not been involved in the maintenance-building planning.

No construction award or budget appropriation was made during the meeting. A county attendee indicated the plan was to finalize details and, once settled, to put the project “out for a second round” of bidding; the meeting transcript records that direction but does not show a formal motion or vote to do so.

The commission closed the discussion by moving on to other agenda items; no firm cost estimates were adopted at the meeting.