County officials took the next step in the process to build a new salt and sand storage building at the Bartholomew County Highway Department headquarters.
The Bartholomew County Commissioners on Monday opened project bids for what will be a new structure at the county’s highway facility. Beginning next fall, county highway will no longer use the 40-foot salt barn at its previous headquarters at 2452 State St.
Jim Shoaf, county attorney, read off the following four bids received:
- Dunlap & Co. for $1.394 million
- Premium Concrete Walls, Inc. for $848,700
- R. Chavez Construction for $1.48 million
- Ferguson Construction for $1.322 million
Commissioner Carl Lienhoop, R-District 2, said the commissioners expect to make a decision on who to award the project to as early as next Monday.
The county is embarking on a new salt barn project two-and-a-half years after an $8 million new county highway garage opened near Petersville at 10163 E 25th St. Since then, the county had been, and still is, using the salt barn at the old county highway garage site on State Street.
The Columbus Redevelopment Commission approved a purchase agreement for the 6-acre old county highway garage for $1.075 million in October. The letter of intent regarding the agreement signed by the county commissioners in August stipulated the county would continue to have access to the salt and storage facilities there until Oct. 1.
When the Columbus City Council backed the expenditure— required because it is a city expenditure greater than $500,000— redevelopment officials emphasized that they haven’t made a determination yet about what to do with the State Street property, but in the months previous noted developers had approached them about a potential housing development on the site.
City officials last year also approved the purchase and renovation of a 21-acre site at 1350 Arcadia Drive for $8.7 million, where a new city department of public works facility will be.
The site was bought for $2.6 million, plus $25,000 in closing costs with renovations expected to cost an amount not to exceed $6.1 million. The site will also have a new salt barn, which council members approved up to $3.7 million in funding in November.
The 9,600-square foot salt barn on State Street cost the county $400,000 when it was built nine years ago.
Director of Redevelopment Heather Pope previously said that if the county doesn’t have a use for for its current salt barn, then the city is likely to demolish it. County officials indicated earlier this month that the salt barn on State Street cannot be moved.
