Onley council hires Becker Morgan, raises town-office budget to $1 million

The Onley Town Council voted May 4 to hire Becker Morgan Group for architectural services and to boost the New Town Office Building Budget to $1,000,000.

Town Manager Jamye Salazar told the council she had collected ballpark fee quotes from multiple firms and re-circulated a proposal summary. Council members said they favored Becker Morgan in part because the firm has an Eastern Shore office and quoted lower building costs; staff and council cited quoted construction estimates of about $300–$350 per square foot from Becker Morgan versus roughly $500 per square foot from another firm.

On a motion by Councilman Jason Campbell, seconded by Councilman Rodney Lang, council accepted Becker Morgan’s proposal by roll-call vote. Later in the meeting Councilman Brian Corbin moved — and the council approved unanimously — to re-appropriate $591,847.05 already set aside for the project and to add $408,152.95 to bring the total to $1,000,000. Corbin noted the town has already paid more than $100,000 in office rent over the last four years and said reusing a soil sample test completed in 2018 could save costs.

Mayor Ned Finney described hiring an architect as "an investment in the town," and several members said they want to move the project forward now while costs remain manageable. The council declined a proposal to research modular construction further.

The council did not set a construction schedule or final design in the meeting; staff said next steps include contract finalization with the architect and public review steps required by project procurement. The town manager will present additional project cost details and timeline updates at future meetings.