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Council approves pre‑construction contract and recommends construction manager for library expansion
Summary
Stewartville council accepted a committee recommendation to proceed with a construction manager for the planned library expansion and authorized a pre‑construction contract not to exceed $5,000 to finalize plans; staff said the selected firm will later convert to a lump‑sum fee for management services.
The Stewartville City Council on voice vote approved a staff recommendation to proceed with a pre‑construction contract for the planned library expansion and accepted the committee’s recommendation for a construction management firm.
Council members said a committee that interviewed six firms recommended the firm appearing in the meeting packet as Benicki (the meeting transcript shows alternative spellings including Benecke and Benikey). City staff said they checked references with other cities where the firm managed similar projects and received positive feedback.
Staff presented two bid examples for construction management services: Benicki at 229,000 and Reliable at $245,011.25 (figures as presented in the meeting packet). Council authorized an initial pre‑construction contract not to exceed $5,000 to allow the selected firm to work with the architect on the final project concept plan; according to staff, the firm will convert its fee to a lump‑sum management contract once final plans are approved by the library board and city council.
Council member Jeremiah Ogin, who served on the selection committee, said the interview panel “came out of it with really good good feeling about Benikey,” reflecting the committee’s positive impression. City staff and the committee emphasized that the pre‑construction contract is preliminary and that council will see a final contract for construction management and a lump‑sum fee once the plans are complete.
Why it matters: Selecting a construction manager and moving into pre‑construction work signals progress toward the library expansion’s design and bidding phases; the pre‑construction contract will fund final scoping and cost refinement so the city and the library board can approve a final budget and contract.
Next steps: Staff will execute the pre‑construction agreement (not to exceed $5,000), continue reference and design coordination, and return to the council and the library board with final plans and a lump‑sum management proposal for approval.
