WASHINGTON CO. COMMISSIONERS APPROVE PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SERVICES CONTRACT

  

Washington County Commissioners have approved the hiring of a project manager for construction on the county’s new Road and Bridge Facility.

Commissioners at their meeting this (Tuesday) morning approved a contract with EMC International, Inc., who will now oversee construction on the $4,080,000 facility.

The new facility, being built on Highway 36 North, will house the county’s road and bridge department, as well as the rural addressing and environmental departments.

Brenda Jenkins of EMC explained to commissioners that the next few weeks will be spent working on a project status assessment. Jenkins said her firm will be collecting and analyzing all of the data pertinent to the construction project so far.  This will include meeting one-on-one with commissioners later this week.

Jenkins also said the company wants to work on creating the “total project cost”, by accounting for all the costs associated with the project, not just the construction and design costs. She said the project will consist of other costs associated with the project that those contracts do not cover, and that the firm wants to identify what those costs are.

Jenkins said this data will be compiled into a web-based software system accessible by county officials. She said the county will be able to see the same things EMC sees.  She added the company will set this all up in an implementation strategy and project execution plan that the county will see within the next month or so.

The county in April officially broke ground at the site of the new facility. The project was designed by PlanNorth Architecture, and is being built by Collier Construction.  Construction is expected to begin soon, as groundwork nears completion.  Jenkins said she plans to work very closely with both of these companies.

Commissioners also:

• Accepted four roads in the Crosswinds Estates subdivision into the county road system.  Those roads are Council Lane, East Crosswinds Court, West Crosswinds Court, and Carey Drive.  Precinct Three Commissioner Kirk Hanath said this acceptance will not include a retention pond.
• Heard the 2018 audit report from Rutledge, Crain and Company, Certified Public Accountants.
• Opened a pair of bids received for inmate food services at the Washington County Jail.  The two bidders were Trinity Services Group and Aramark.
• Approved a pair of formal notices for proposed utility lines from Verdun Oil Company.  The formal notices are for 6-inch natural gas pipeline crossings within county right-of-way of Brandt Road and Eckermann Road in Precinct Four.