COLUMBUS, Ind. — Contractors estimate that the new Bartholomew County Highway Garage, with a price tag of between $7.6 million to $8 million, is about 80% to 85% completed.
Located east of Petersville, the garage facility consists of a 22,000 square foot main building off East 25th Street, located on what was once 11.25-acres of farm land.
Beside the main building, there is also a 14,400 square foot outer shed that will house 15 dump trucks, as well as a 12,800 square foot structure for storing other equipment, county highway superintendent Dwight Smith said.
While paving and landscaping is scheduled to get underway this month, construction likely won’t be completed until early July, Bartholomew County Commissioner Carl Lienhoop said.
Since mid-summer is the busiest time of the year for the 22-employee highway department, the move from the current garage at 2452 State Street may have to be done in phases, moving a few things at a time, Smith said.
For the past 10 months, there have been close to a dozen contractors working on the facility under the supervision of project superintendent Randy Strietelmeier of Taylor Bros. Construction.
“I remember one day we had over 50 employees in here working at the same time,” Strietelmeier said. “There were about 60 guys last fall when we were doing concrete work, including crane operators. But on average, we probably have about 35 people working here each day.”
For the full story, see Wednesday’s Republic.
