The same firm overseeing construction of a new county highway garage near Petersville will also supervise the establishment of a new court services center in downtown Columbus.
After a unanimous vote by the Bartholomew County commissioners Monday, Taylor Brothers Construction Co. will manage both pre-construction and construction phases of the new court services building scheduled to go up near First and Lafayette streets. The facility will be built where the former law offices of attorney Richard Eynon currently stands.
In May, Indianapolis architect Steve Risting was hired to design the new court services center and adjacent parking lot. On Monday, the commissioners say they want Taylor Brothers working with Risting during both the planning and construction phases, Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz said.
“We believe we can save some money on engineering, as well as having experienced professionals who know how to cut costs,” Kleinhenz said.
Commissioner chairman Carl Lienhoop describes the supervisory work by Taylor Brothers at the new county highway garage as “outstanding.”
The cost of hiring the company to oversee the project could cost taxpayers close to $100,000. That includes $18,000 in pre-construction services, $60,000 in construction services. and up to $20,000 in reimbursable expenses, Commissioner Chairman Carl Lienhoop said.
“We feel that is good value for the site of this project,” Lienhoop said.
Although no demolition date has been set, current plans call for the current court services building, located in the former Elks Club at 507 Third St., to be torn down. That would empty an entire county-owned block for the city’s new hotel and conference center between Second, Franklin, Third and Lafayette streets.
The city receives that property as part of a land swap. In exchange, construction of the Bartholomew County Court Services building will mostly be handled by the city, which owns the former law offices and surrounding land at First and Lafayette.
In May, the city agreed to pay the first $2 million to acquire the property off of First Street and build a new Court Services building, Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop said.
Although exact construction costs won’t be known until architectural plans are approved, “we’re pretty confident it will be in the $3 million to $3.5 million range,” the mayor said in June.
However, it could take quite some time before the hotel/conference center is built. The entire project has been placed on hold until the hospitality industry recovers from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, Columbus Redevelopment director Heather Pope said.
So for the time being, city officials say the parking lot will remain available to the public and county employees.
