FARMINGTON — Work on the new dispatch center began Monday with Franklin County commissioners, Dispatch Building Committee members and an engineering firm’s representatives going over the preliminary floor-plan design.

Commissioners voted unanimously to sign a contract with Plymouth Engineering Inc. of Plymouth for $29,860.

The vote came after some clarifying questions and answers were discussed.

“My goal is to take what you have already done” and use it and move forward, project engineer Keith Ewing said.

He did make a couple of changes for code requirements, he said, including moving bathroom toilets and sinks away from exterior walls so they would not freeze. There also has to be two bathrooms to comply with code, he said.

The Building Committee had planned to have one bathroom and a janitor’s closet plumbed for an additional bathroom. It was an effort to cut costs to bring the budget under $600,000, as requested by Commissioner Fred Hardy of New Sharon.

Ewing said there were no hidden fees built into the contract.

Total fees will not exceed $29,860, except for additional site visits during construction administration, he said.

“Until we start digging in the ground, there are no extra costs beyond this price,” Ewing said.

Basic services and fees in the contract are:

* Preliminary design: Two meetings to review existing, preliminary plans and produce code-compliant drawing and review site requirements, $700.

* Civil design: Site observation, site-plan design, parking, building orientation and storm water management, town of Farmington permitting, $3,380.

* Building design: Portion of the design process to develop the floor plans approved in the preliminary design phase into biddable construction documents. This includes structural foundation and structural framing plans for a 2,220-square-foot facility and construction details, architectural plans for layout of the building, all required code items, and mechanical and electrical drawings for the project, $17,800.

Bidding process: To put the project out to bid. Advertising by owner, $2,100.

Construction administration: Contract preparation and signing shop drawing review, site inspection, pay requisition meetings, punch lists and eight site visits, $4,880.

Reimbursable expenses: Includes mileage, copying and Town of Farmington, Office of the State Fire Marshal permit fees, $1,000.

After the contract was signed, the meeting was moved upstairs to the jury room in the courthouse to get down to work and begin reviewing the preliminary design.

dperry@sunjournal.com

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