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STEUBENVILLE -- The Jefferson County Fair Board is running out of options for getting its small animal showbarn off the drawing board and under construction.
At Thursday's meeting, commissioners made it clear they aren't willing to spend $443,000 on a barn, even if it has a concrete pad rather than the compacted gravel the park board was willing to settle for.
"Maybe there's some discussion that can go on with the state to see if there's some variance to some of the requirements, to see if we can bring the cost down," Commissioner Dave Maple said after the meeting. "Obviously, no action taken and no vote to move forward. Sends the message … it's still high, we're still looking at $400,000 for a barn. It appears we'll keep working with them but it's still pretty high."
McKinley Architecture and Engineering's Tim Mizer had hoped for two bids, but only one was submitted before the April 27 deadline -- Cattrell Company of Toronto submitted a base bid of $443,000, but opting for the compacted gravel would have reduced the price by $40,000.
Mizer had recommended commissioners approve the base bid, which included the concrete floor. Although in excess of the engineer's estimate–$420,000 -- he said the overage fell within the state's 10 percent allowance.
"If we decided to take the $40,000 credit we would not have concrete, we would have compacted gravel," he said. "$443,000 is for the complete building, with concrete."
The fair board has $45,500 in state grant funds for the project, provided its done by July. That would lower the county's participation to around $400,000, Maple pointed out.
"I've been approached quite a bit by this barn," Commissioner Tony Morelli said. "The barn is a hot topic. I said it before, I just can't vote for something that's going to cost $60 a square foot. I want to get the barn -- I don't know if there's another way."
Mizer said the state's prevailing wage and building code mandates had a lot to do with the inflated bids.
"There's a lot of factors in this," he said. "Because we had to go through the permit (process) in the state of Ohio, multiple things increased in cost for us -- for instance, with the typical pole barn the gauge of steel is a lot thinner than what is dictated by the state of Ohio.
"What we bid was what was required because when we submitted the drawings they made note that it needed to be different, a different gauge," he said.
The fair board's Debbie Hukill said they've heard the "naysayers screaming" about the price tag, too.
"But there's a lot of things involved that got us where we are," she said. "Prevailing wage … state permits … and getting a contractor that is qualified to bid public projects, that's a whole different fellow than who is usually putting up pole barns -- they have overhead because they have employees who keep up with the paperwork involved, they have bonding capacity, they have the ability and credibility to do this kind of work," Hukill said.
"Is it $200,000 worth? I don't know. But I think it's apples and oranges to compare this to the guys you're running into saying 'so and so put this barn up for 200 grand' -- that's not going to happen today. When I sit back and look at overall building costs they have gone crazy. I don't think we have anything we can make a good comparison to."
Hukill said the Ohio Revised Code regulations are "supposed to ensure we get good quotes" on public projects.
"Whether or not it did in this case I can't say," she said. "I just know it's a lot different than what we ever dreamed it would be but I also know its a needed thing out there."
"That's the reason it's been on my mind all week," Morelli said. "I participated in the fair. It means a lot."
Morelli was unwilling to call for a vote, as was Commissioner Eric Timmons.
"In my mind it is (moot) this year," Morelli said. "The barn has fallen victim to what is going on in our country. There are other options, but my opinion is it is not going to happen this year. I'm not giving up, but there comes a time when too much is too much."
Maple agreed they're at an impasse.
"Obviously, no action and no vote to move forward sends the message … it's still (too) high," he said. "You're still looking at $440,000 for a barn. It appears we'll keep working with them, but it's still pretty high.
"We hear somebody can put a barn up for 200,000, yet when it goes through the right ways and the legal ways it turns into $400,000, it doesn't seem like government is working in the right direction. We're subject to the laws of Ohio, it's not like we can circumvent them. That's kind of the box we're in right now."
In other matters, commissioners:
— Chose to move forward with caulking any gaps in the fire escape so that priming and painting can proceed and the contractor can stay on schedule.
The change order would cost another $16,000, but they have a credit that brings it down to about $10,800. Mizer told them they won't be out of pocket any money since they have a $30,000 contingency they haven't tapped into.
— Approved a $16,753 change order for the County Road 23 slip repairs. Construction Engineer Eric Hilty told commissioners the change is due to an increase in the slip length since the bid was awarded.
— Learned relocating a water line to accommodate the state's plans to widen a roadway is going to cost at least twice what the water department had expected.
"I told you it was $200,000 when we started planning … but it's doubled," Water Supervisor Mike Eroshevich said.
— Approved American Legion Post 33 Women's Auxiliary's request to pass out poppies Friday in front of the courthouse, as well as Memorial Day expenses to Adena American Legion Gilbert Koontz Unit 525, $500; Richmond Community Historical Society, $100; and East Springfield Community Center, $100.
— Referred a petition for permission to alter a section of Township Road 167 ( Tarr Hill Road) as it intersects with CR 19 (Brilliant/New Alexandria Road) to County Engineer Jim Branagan.
— Told Eroshevich his department can purchase three trucks from TEAM Automotive at a price significantly below what they would have to pay through the state purchasing program.
— Passed resolutions declaring May as Fraud Awareness Month and Foster Care Month. Jefferson County currently has eight foster homes and is in the process of certifying eight more.