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Highlands Today

Veterans' Building Could Cost Less Than Expected

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By JIM KONKOLY

Highlands Today

Published: October 16, 2008

SEBRING - After opening the 10 bids submitted for construction of the new Highlands County Veterans Services building, county officials are cautiously optimistic that the cost could come in well below the estimated price.

"It's excellent news overall," said Jed Secory, county director of purchasing and general services. "Depending on what happens, we have six bids that are within reason of each other, all under $400,000 ... the pricing looks excellent."

Secory and county Engineer Ramon Gavarrete said they will meet with the lowest bidders and make a detailed study of their proposals to verify that each bid covers all of the work required.

County officials originally estimated that the construction portion of this project would be in the neighborhood of $450,000.
Coral Sands Construction of North Port submitted the lowest base bid at $284,650 for the 3,200-square-foot steel building, which will increase space for veterans services nearly fivefold.

The second through sixth lowest bids were all submitted by Highlands County companies. Trinity Development Corp. submitted a price of $309,962, followed by E.O. Koch at $315,874, Chapman's Construction at $346,384, Montz Builders at $394,500, and M.E. Gose Inc. at $399,600.

"It appears that Coral Sands is the lowest bid price, but this has not been confirmed by an in-depth study by staff," Secory said. "Right now they are the lowest by the numbers, but we haven't reviewed their numbers or done any in-depth review of the bids."

Gavarrete said every construction bid has to be carefully scrutinized, and there is an added reason for meticulous review on this project.

Usually, he said, the county hires a firm to do the engineering and architectural work, and then seeks bids for construction.

"In this case, the board (of county commissioners) decided not to hire an architectural firm, so we basically are asking the contractors to provide the drawings following the criteria that we provided," Gavarrete said. "There has been some concern that the bidders may not have bid on everything that we were asking for."

Gavarrete said it will take at least several weeks to thoroughly study the bids and make a recommendation on awarding a contract to the county commissioners.

"Right now, I am in no position to say who we are recommending," he said.

Joe Dionne, veterans services director, also will be involved in the review process along with the staffs of the purchasing and engineering departments.

"We want to make sure that the companies that bid for the project understand all of the specifications and all of the requirements for the bid," he said.

The new veterans building will be built behind the Highlands County Health Department and Human Services building on George Boulevard, where veterans services now operates in cramped quarters of about 650 square feet.

"When I started here four and a half years ago, we were seeing about 150 people a month," Dionne said. "Last month, we saw about 1,200 people, and that's about right for the average for a month now."

About 800 veterans visit the office per month, while veterans services counselors meet another 400 veterans in their homes or out in the community, he said.

For the many veterans seeking assistance in getting the benefits they are entitled to, Dionne said, "the new building is going to help us provide better service in a more customer-friendly atmosphere."

In addition to more office and storage space, the new veterans building also will feature a conference room, which can be used for various programs and also as a meeting place for veterans groups that have no meeting place of their own.

The county has budgeted about $800,000 for this building project, including the costs for site preparation work, parking and furnishings. A federal matching grant of $402,000 has been awarded for the project.

If the favorable bid prices on construction hold up under scrutiny, Dionne said, veterans will have a "class act facility" while helping the county financially.

"If we can come in under budget," he said, "in that way the veterans of Highlands County can assist all the other citizens of the county by being fiscally conservative in this time of economic constraint."

Jim Konkoly can be reached at 863-386-5855 or e-mail jkonkoly@highlandstoday.com

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