Committee seeks plans and cost estimates after vendor fails to deliver

The committee opened by approving its May 26 minutes by voice vote, then turned to discussion of plans for a proposed building that would include a library and community room.

Rogers, who led the project discussion, told members he had received pictures from Alan Cobb roughly three weeks earlier but had not received the promised cost numbers. "He sent me these pictures ... he was supposed to get numbers for me ... he said he'd have them in a week. He didn't," Rogers said, adding he would contact Hammond Lumber in Belgrade to find a more responsive contact.

Rogers relayed preliminary cost figures he had been given by Hammond: "Don't hold me to this, but you said it should be between $225,000 for what Hammond would do" (covering lumber, windows, doors, siding, insulation and drywall) and that the whole project "probably" would be about $750,000 once labor, plumbing and electrical work were included. Rogers contrasted those figures with an earlier, much larger figure cited from "Omega Tech," which he said had estimated the project at roughly 3 to 6 million; he acknowledged uncertainty about which estimate would be more accurate.

Committee members questioned who produced the drawings and expressed skepticism about authorship and fit. One member asked directly, "Who made these drawings?" and others suggested the plans might have been drafted by someone other than Hammond's regular staff. Members also critiqued the appearance and layout (one member said, "I really don't like that little porch roof thing"), and discussed possible façade and layout changes if the committee proceeds.

The group discussed procurement options and next steps. Members agreed detailed, stamped plans would be needed for competitive bids and for the public bid process; options included hiring an engineer to produce formal plans or asking Hammond/Belgrade to rework or separate the drawings so contractors could price the work. Rogers noted that Hammond has in the past provided discounts on materials and might apply plan fees toward materials if the community purchased through them, but he emphasized the discussion was exploratory.

Members also discussed separating the project into the library and the community room as alternate scopes if that helped lower costs, noting it is generally cheaper to build both together but that a reduced program might be required to meet budget constraints.

As a procedural next step, the committee set a follow-up meeting for July 27 and agreed to postpone if the requested information and cost breakdowns are not received by July 20. Rogers said he would attempt to reach Hammond and distribute whatever materials arrive before the next meeting.

The meeting closed with members confirming they would circulate the existing plans and address questions when more information is available.