The Columbia County Management & Internal Services Committee approved a series of construction and repair contracts during its Jan. 13 meeting, including replacement of a hazmat building at Fire Station 7, repairs to the county maintenance facility and architectural services for a Department of Revenue renovation.

Mister Prather outlined work completed and planned at multiple county facilities and recommended approval of an independent contract with 2 State Construction for $99,959 to replace the hazmat building damaged by a tree during the recent hurricane. He said staff had worked with insurance, risk management and emergency management on funding and scope. "This is a replacement of that facility," Prather said, and staff recommended approval.

Committee members questioned whether the existing concrete slab should be fully replaced or reused. A contractor representative explained that after on-site review "probably 90% of the slab will remain, and we'll just have to cut out the 6 footers, repour them, and then set the grid for the middle building," adding that some footer sections would be cut and repoured. Prather cautioned the decision is partly contingent on insurance and engineering reviews in the field.

The committee also approved a $134,112 independent contract with Summers Construction Company to repair the county Maintenance Department inventory facility that sustained structural damage in the storm. Prather said maintenance staff performed temporary repairs but engineers and insurance reviewed the damage for a scoped permanent fix.

Separately, the committee approved a $47,500 professional services contract for full engineering and architectural services to renovate the first floor of Building G1 for the Department of Revenue, which plans to consolidate from two floors to one to reduce office size. Prather confirmed the $47,500 scope includes HVAC engineering and full construction documents.

Motions to approve the items were made and seconded and recorded by the chair; no roll-call tallies were provided in the transcript. Prather said staff will monitor the hazmat-shed slab work closely and "report back" if further funds or changes are required.

The committee accepted staff reports and adjourned at 08:42.