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Teton County staff present $1.7M transfer‑station plan; commissioners weigh size vs. future cost
Summary
Public Works and Architects West presented a project initiation report for the county transfer station, recommending design and permitting next. The board asked staff to return with options to reduce footprint versus long‑term expansion costs; current build estimate is about $1.7 million with $830,000 available in FY26.
TETON COUNTY, Idaho — Public Works Director Daryl Johnson asked the Board of County Commissioners to authorize a next step in the transfer‑station expansion: design and permitting for a new scale house, second scale and a crew building.
Architect Steve Roth (Architects West) summarized the project initiation report and described a proposed program: a roughly 3,000‑square‑foot crew building (cost estimate about $836,000 for the building) and a total planned facility cost roughly estimated at $1.7 million. The report explained Task 1 (initiation) is complete (not‑to‑exceed $66,000), Task 2 (design and permitting) is estimated at about $190,000, and Task 3 (bidding assistance) about $25,000. Daryl told the board the FY26 line item includes $850,000 and about $830,000 remains for the effort this fiscal year.
Commissioners probed escalation assumptions (architect used 1% per year for construction inflation), staffing and growth assumptions (the layout anticipates modest growth, perhaps two to three employees), and tradeoffs between building larger now versus paying substantially higher retrofit costs later. Daryl reported a design option could shave about 500 sq ft (e.g., consolidating restrooms into two unisex rooms) and estimated roughly $100,000 in savings for that reduction.
Board members agreed they preferred planning for long‑term capacity if it kept the project within budget and directed staff to return with a formal action item and more detailed budget options at the next meeting.
What happens next: Staff will work with architects on alternate footprints and bring a formal action item for Task 2 (design/permit authorization) to the next BOCC meeting for final direction.
