Joomla Login LightBox powered by WowJoomla.com

Follow Us

More News Headlines

Current Poll

Would you support a proposed 1% statewide sales tax?

	No, sales tax is already too high.
	Yes, no higher than 1%.
	Yes, whatever it takes to save jobs.
	No, not at that amount.

Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar

Featured Jobs

Council OK’s Library Bid

News - Osawatomie

Written by Travis Perry

Tuesday, 10 November 2009 08:00

The city of Osawatomie took a step forward Thursday evening with the approval of a bid from Combes Construction for work on Osawatomie Public Library.

Made possible by a $400,000 Community Development Block Grant, the work planned for the library includes the remodeling of the institution’s bathrooms and stairs, as well as the addition of an elevator to make basement access compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

By increasing access to the 3,400-square-foot basement, Library Director Elizabeth Trigg said, the project will double the usable space in the library.

“This library is literally busting at the seams,” she said, adding that when the building was constructed about 30 years ago, it simply wasn’t made for the kind of needs the library has today. “Libraries are no longer just for books. They’re a community service now.”
Olathe-based Combes’ bid — $394,000 with an alternate project of $14,000 for the construction of additional storage in basement — was one of three proposals considered by the Osawatomie City Council during a special session Thursday for the purpose of approving a bid.

Combes was chosen as the “lowest responsible bidder,” a classification that City Manager Bret Glendening said encompasses several factors: “We look for past experiences of other customers of that contractor; we look for quality of work. It’s a whole host of things we look for.”

While the grant will cover the bulk of the project, the city was required to pitch in $70,000. That funding has been secured for several months.

According to the terms of the grant, Combes is required to be “shovel-ready” by Dec. 1.

Donna Crawford, grant administrator with Governmental Assistance Services in Lawrence, said this means that all contracts must be signed and a notice to proceed must be issued by then. A pre-construction meeting has not yet been scheduled to iron out the final details, she said, but she expects that to take place in coming weeks.

Set as favorite

Bookmark

Email This

Trackback(0)

TrackBack URI for this entry