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Commission approves $57M GMP for MSO campus Phase 2 to consolidate maintenance and solid waste operations
Summary
The Lawrence City Commission authorized a $57,016,920 guaranteed maximum price on Oct. 14 for Phase 2 of the MSO campus, consolidating the city’s Central Maintenance Garage and Solid Waste operations into a modern facility designed to improve safety and move critical services out of a floodway.
The Lawrence City Commission voted unanimously Oct. 14 to authorize the city manager to execute Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1 with McCownGordon in the amount of $57,016,920 to construct Phase 2 of the Municipal Services & Operations (MSO) campus.
Phase 2 will house a consolidated Central Maintenance Garage (CMG) and the Solid Waste Division, plus associated site work, two additional wash bays, a cart wash building and covered bulk storage. City staff, the Dake Wells design team and McCownGordon presented drawings showing a single, durable maintenance building with vehicle circulation lanes, translucent daylighting, rooftop photovoltaic planning and precast insulated exterior walls. Projected benefits included improved safety, space for growing fleet sizes, reduced equipment downtime and removal of critical services from the floodway near Eleventh and Haskell.
Construction manager McCownGordon said combining Phase 1 and Phase 2 construction and ordering long‑lead items early produced roughly $3 million in savings versus separated schedules. The total project cost cited by staff was approximately $130.1 million; the Phase 2 GMP sits within the authorized project budget and staff said no additional funding was requested at this time.
Public comments were largely from city mechanics and solid waste employees who described cramped, unsafe work conditions at current facilities and urged commission support. The Coalition for Collaborative Governance and other commenters expressed concern about the speed and scale of borrowing, asking commissioners to consider spreading spending to reduce peak debt service. Staff noted the capital plan includes use of fund balance and owner contingency to smooth near‑term impacts.
McCownGordon presented a construction schedule that would begin procurement in early 2026, a roughly 19‑month construction period, building structure completion in early 2027 and substantial completion in late 2027. Commissioners emphasized the project’s operational necessity and voted to authorize the GMP amendment by voice vote (4–0).
Staff said they will continue to manage contingencies and return any unused contingency to allow reinvestment in other needs, and will coordinate final phasing and move planning so city services remain uninterrupted during construction.
