Council approves multiple contracts for fire station renovation; staff say grants cover most costs

Chief Randy Keane told the council on Jan. 12 that bid pack 2 for the fire station renovation covers interior work and that construction has progressed since earlier exterior work. Keane recommended awarding multiple contracts for the next phase of the project.

Council moved to award the drywall contract to Multi Construction Services (Walled Lake). The motion, made by Council member Hughes, was recorded in the transcript and subsequently approved by the council.

Keane and project staff said painting bids were awarded to Paul’s Primetime Painting (Utica) with a contingency allocation, and the council approved that contract. For electrical work, Keane explained some circuits and infrastructure were previously demoed, creating uncertainty about conditions; because of that the electrical contract was bid as time and materials. Council approved awarding electrical time-and-materials work to Michigan Quality Electric (Commerce Township) with a not-to-exceed limit recorded in the meeting packet.

Keane said the city received two grants totaling $1.2 million to support the renovation and that state expectations included an approximate $300,000 local contribution; staff said they were close to that amount to date. The plumbing package was awarded to Halligan Plumbing and Mechanical (Newport), and council approved the plumbing contract with a contingency amount.

All fire-station-related motions were recorded as passing on the Jan. 12 roll calls.

Council discussion included confirmations that some of these packages complete bid pack 2 and one remaining mechanical/HVAC package will be presented at a subsequent meeting. Keane estimated the project’s completion “by June” but cautioned against promising exact dates to crews given prior schedule changes.