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Kootenai County justice building finishes under budget by roughly $2.64 million, officials report
Summary
Turner & Townsend and county staff presented a final reconciliation of the Justice Building project showing construction plus soft costs of $33,653,485 against a $35,607,527 budget, an underrun of $2,641,857. Staff said about $15,000 in remaining FF&E and finish items will roll into FY26.
Turner & Townsend project manager David Mendez told Kootenai County commissioners on Oct. 28 that the Justice Building project closed substantially under the overall budget.
"I have given you a four‑page spreadsheet that covers these items," Mendez said, and walked the board through contingencies, change orders and soft‑cost reconciliations.
Mendez and county staff reported a construction and soft‑cost total of $33,653,485 compared with a budget of $35,607,527, yielding an underrun of $2,641,857. The presentation detailed unused design and construction contingency amounts (totaling roughly $573,205) and unused allowances that created a net credit of approximately $747,200.
Jeff Fuller and Mendez described a remaining set of small FF&E and finish items — judge peepholes, a privacy lock for a men's restroom, conference‑room table modifications, attorney‑client speak‑through modifications, a replacement desk and storage racks — that together are expected to total about $15,000. County staff said those items will be carried into the FY26 budget and processed through remaining closeout work, including certified payroll audits and final billings.
Why it matters: The presentation closes a multi‑year capital project and provides transparency about contingencies, credits and owner‑carried reserves. The county reported it did not use the $1,027,000 owner‑carried contingency and that soft costs were lower than estimated by about $926,897.
What officials said: Mendez summarized line‑by‑line reconciliations, and county staff confirmed they are nearly complete with final audits and punch‑list work. "So essentially, the contractor said this is going to be a $35,000,000 project... our entire project, construction plus soft costs, came in at $33,653,000," a county speaker observed during the briefing.
Next steps: Staff will complete the remaining FF&E purchases and certified payroll audits and will present any required final change orders for formal approval in a future meeting if needed.
