By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
After approving some significant change orders to the Barton County Courthouse HVAC Renovation Project earlier this month, the county commission Tuesday reviewed two smaller change orders. Because the changes come in under the $50,000 threshold, the commission did not need to approve the changes. County Administrator Matt Patzner said the smaller of the two changes was the removal of the ceiling in the mechanical room.
"This allowed easier access to put in duct work and piping exactly the way they needed to in order for it to be as efficient as possible," he said. "That was $11,941.88."
That change order will not cost the county additional funds as it will be subtracted from the $20,000 contingency fund in the original contract. The other change came in Courtroom A on the third floor.
"As you know, Courtroom A is essentially a wooden box inside a bigger room, so we needed to change the way the duct work flowed to keep it up to code," Patzner said. "That was $12,797.95."
The ceiling inside the mechanical room will not be replaced to allow for easier access to infrastructure in the future. The commission approved change orders totaling $188,000 on the project earlier this month.