Raytown aldermen approve concealed Kevlar panels for Community Development counter; amendment capped at $53,736.39

Raytown aldermen approved a resolution Oct. 21 to amend an agreement with the Wilson Group Inc. that will add concealed Kevlar panels beneath the Community Development Office counter and raise the contract cap to $53,736.39.

Jason Hanson, city engineer, told the board the office is “currently under remodeling, getting a new counter and bullet resistant window.” He said the drywall framing under the counter was not originally reinforced, and contractors proposed adding Kevlar panels behind the drywall to provide additional ballistic resistance. Hanson told the board, “We're asking for the Kevlar approval to add bullet resistance in the under countertop area, which should be an additional $2,000 of funding for this project.”

Hanson explained the panels are custom-made, “they do need to be kinda custom made and a little bit of lead time,” and said installers will place the panels between two layers of drywall so the finished walls will look like ordinary painted drywall. He cautioned on performance limits: “maybe a rifle type gun could maybe penetrate it, but it would be slowed quite a bit. But a handgun, it would stop it pretty well.”

Alderman Walters asked clarifying questions about placement and finish, confirming with Hanson that the panels will be on the inside of the wall and will not be visible from either side. Alderman Hayden and others asked whether future renovations would use similar bullet-resistant materials; Hanson and staff said they expect to include bullet-resistant glass and Kevlar in future public‑building renovations as appropriate.

Hanson provided budget context: the original project was budgeted in the capital sales tax at $86,000; the work as bid came in about $29,000 under that figure. The presented change order represents roughly a 12.2% increase over the bid for the specific contract package, and the additional funding requested for the Kevlar panels was about $2,000.

Alderman Azer moved to approve the amendment; Alderman Garza seconded. The board voted by roll call and the motion carried.

The board did not record any amendments to the approved language; staff will proceed with the change order and installation under the revised contract cap.