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Board accepts low bid for Jesse Willis Field restrooms but delays notice of award pending sewer hookup costs
Summary
The Adams County Board accepted a low construction bid for restroom facilities at Jesse Willis Field but postponed issuing a notice of award after staff warned a gravity sewer tie-in — estimated but not confirmed — could add substantial cost and is outside the construction contract scope.
The Adams County Board of Supervisors heard certified bids for the Jesse Willis Field restroom project and agreed the low bid is reasonable, but members held final award until they can verify the cost to tie the restroom to the city sewer.
Joey Ferg, the landscape architect on the project, told the board four bids were received and the low offer from Speed's Construction was roughly $243,000, about 6% above the May 2025 estimate of $233,200 but still within the 10% overage allowance in the contract. Ferg recommended keeping the low bidder and said he would prepare the notice of award once the board approves moving forward.
During discussion supervisors and staff raised a separate scope issue: the gravity sewer connection from the new restroom pavilion to a nearby manhole lies outside the architect’s contract and was not included in the bid. County staff reported the run is about 475–500 feet and that initial, informal contractor feedback suggested a wide range of possible costs; one estimate mentioned during the meeting was approximately $150,000 but participants emphasized that figure was a rough guess and not a confirmed quote.
Board members expressed concern about constructing the restroom building and leaving it unusable if the sewer hookup cannot be funded or completed. Supervisors asked county staff (including the staff member who has been contacting Natchez public works) to obtain firm cost estimates and confirm whether the city will perform or require a separate contracting route for the sewer tie. The board directed staff to reach back to the contractor about holding the bid and to seek more precise cost information rather than rebidding the construction package.
Ferg also presented an invoice for $1,500 covering the final 25% of his construction documents phase; the board voted to approve that payment while continuing to hold the formal notice of award for the construction contract until sewer-cost and coordination questions are answered.
What happens next: county staff will obtain written cost estimates and report back to the board. The board did not authorize issuing the notice of award at the meeting and left the construction contract pending until the sewer-tie funding and technical routing are clarified.
