The commissioners, who were acting in their capacity as trustees of the Pittsburg County Economic Development Authority, voted unanimously to accept the bids during the authority’s regular meeting in the commissioners’ Conference Room at the Pittsburg County Courthouse.
Dave Myers, vice president of the Atlas Construction Group, presented a breakdown of the bids to the commissioners. While the bids were opened last week, Atlas — which will oversee the project for the county commissioners — compiled a list of the bids which the company recommended should be awarded.
After all the winning bids were compiled, the total project cost came in at $3,134,534. Commissioners said the cost will be paid largely through existing county economic development funds.
Myers said the original budget did not include RV hook-ups at the site. This added approximately $35,000 to the project cost, he said.
District 2 Commissioner Kevin Smith wanted to know about the number of contractors who submitted winning bids and who will be working on the project.
“How many contractors are there?” Smith asked.
“From 25-to-30,” Myers said. “But as far as you guys are concerned, you’re contracted with us.”
Myers expected initial work to begin soon.
“Our plan is, if everything is approved here today...we’ll have our superintendent here next Monday,” he said shortly before the commissioners voted to approve the package.
County commissioners have committed their work crews to organizing and carrying out the initial dirt work to help cut down on the cost of the project.
“Hopefully, they’ll start on dirt work pretty quick so he won’t be sitting in the trailer,” Myers said, referring to the construction superintendent who will be onsite.
Plans call for the new emergency management center to be constructed on existing county property between the Pittsburg County Animal Shelter and the rodeo arena on D Street.
Architect Brent Clark attended the meeting regarding the new emergency operations center. Before the meeting began, Clark said the main building will cover around 6,500 square feet while a nearby storage building will cover around 2,500 square feet, bringing the total square footage of the buildings involved to approximately 9,000 square feet. Plans are for the storage building to be large enough to store numerous generators inside it in the event of an ice storm or some other natural disaster.
“They’ll use that as a staging area,” Clark said.
Myers said the county will have to do a few more tasks before dirt work can begin, such as contacting CALLOKIE to help line out the location of any underground pipes, wires, supply lines or any other underground utilities in the area.
County officials said afterward they were glad to see the project continue moving forward.
“I’m glad we got this approved so we can get moving with it,” said Pittsburg County Office of Emergency Management Executive Director Kevin Enloe. “It’s an exciting day for Pittsburg County.”
“I think it’s one of the best projects we’ve got,” Smith said. “It’s something special McAlester or Southeastern Oklahoma hasn’t had.”
District 1 Commissioner Gene Rogers said he was satisfied with the bids the commissioners awarded.
“It came in pretty well where it was advertised to be,” Rogers said.
He said the new emergency management center will be a great addition to the county.
“I’m glad it happened on our watch,” Rogers said. He said the voters in Pittsburg County also deserve credit for making such projects possible, a reference to their support of the original bond measures for the courthouse renovations, construction of the new Pittsburg County Courthouse and the animal shelter, which the commissioners credited with helping make this new project possible.
“It’s time,” District 3 Commissioner Ross Selman said of construction of the new emergency management center. He noted there have been numerous problems at the current site, in a basement below the Pittsburg County Jail, which has been flooded a number of times.
“They’ve been down in that dungeon a long time, through flooding with the dirty water and everything,” Selman said. “I’m glad to see it’s making progress.”
Contact James Beaty at jbeaty@mcalesternews.com.
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