County getting ready to bid out renovations

County getting ready to bid out renovations

Asbestos removal, new flooring on tap for office building

news@theeveningtimes.com

Crittenden County plans to get bids soon to do the work on the next renovation phase at the county office building. Justice Joe Marotti, who chairs the buildings committee, told the Quorum Court that they met with three contractors — F& F Construction, Suiter Construction, and Quality Flooring — on Dec. 11 and hope to have the bid specifications ready early this month.

“We decided to let (County Treasurer Charlie) Suiter find us some architects for the rooms,” Marotti said. “Then after that we will decide who we are going to use and draw something up.”

The county has been steadily renovating the courthouse from top to bottom and has set its sights next on updating the county office building.

The Quorum Court in October accepted a bid from Quality Flooring for $23,000 to replace all of the ceiling panels on both floors; replace all of the lighting in the building; paint the hallways; install all new paneling; replace the exit lighting; replace the old clocks; paint the elevator; and haul off all of the debris.

Marotti said they are now ready to start renovating the offices on the east side of the building.

“I’m really excited,” Marotti said. “That building needs a lot of work on the inside and the outside.

So I am excited about getting around to do that next year.”

Judge Woody Wheeless said the county will likely go ahead and have the asbestos removed and replace the windows on its own which they don’t need an architect for to save money. “There are a couple of things we can do to that building right now where we don’t need to get an architect involved in it,” Wheeless said. “We’ve already done (asbestos) remediation over there before — down where the election commission is now. That room had asbestos under the carpet. So we are familiar with the work.”

By Mark Randall