By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
An update to the 104-year-old Barton County Courthouse was never going to be a small project. Wednesday morning, commissioners found out just how big the project might be. Bids for installing a new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system for the building closed at 11 a.m. Wednesday. The two bids on the project came in somewhat higher than expected.
"There's definitely some more information we have to gather," said County Director of Operations Matt Patzner. "OSE is going to break down the bids a little bit and parcel everything out so we have a little more information. We'll reevaluate from there and decide which direction we want to go."
An original estimate from April 2022 showed the project costing approximately $2.5 million. The county hoped to use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), federal COVID-19 pandemic relief funds to assist with the expense. That fund currently has a balance of approximately $2.8 million. The low bid from Wichita-based Kruse Corporation came in at just shy of $4.2 million, and another bid from Hays-based Glassman Corporation came in at just under $4.5 million.
Wednesday's commission study session following the opening of the bids was merely informative. Orazem & Scalora Engineering Principal Gerit Garman will now reach out to both companies for a breakdown of the bids. That information will be presented at a future commission meeting for potential action on the bids.
Because of the project's scope, the county continues to look into other properties for county and court business while the new system is installed. The county has submitted a notice of intent to use the old Sears building on Main Street for court-related business though no formal contracts have been signed.