A $1.2 million renovation project for the borough building was approved unanimously by Bellevue Council at its regular meeting on May 5.

Jeff Foreman, an architect from the Eckles Group, which designed the building renovations, was present at the meeting and said that he had received the bids for the work to be done on the building.

According to director of administrative services Connie Flasher, the project includes renovating the administrative office area, making the building handicapped accessible, replacing the flooring in the building, and electrical, heating and cooling work.

Flasher said that the new council chambers will be moved up to the third floor, and offices will take over the space left behind. A counter for a receptionist will replace the double doors going into the old council chambers. The floors will be tiled, and there will be commercial grade carpeting in the offices. An elevator will be installed in the building.

Foreman said that the project was a "bit of a challenge" because the budget was not ideal for a project of this size.

Foreman noted that the borough had received a "healthy" number of bids, which Foreman said was helpful because good competition helps keep costs down. There were a total of six bids for the general contracting work, five bids for the heating and cooling (HVAC), 11 bids for plumbing, and seven bids for the electrical work. Foreman said that two contractors had withdrawn their bids because of errors.

The general contracting bid went to Marco Contractors, Inc., who came in at $568,950. Apex Electric, Inc. received the contract for the electrical work, with a bid of $200,600. The lowest bid for the plumbing work went to East End Plumbing for $26,500, and R. A. Finnegan was awarded the contract
for the HVAC work with a bid coming in at $269,000. Foreman said that all of the contractors who won the bids, have a good track record.

The architect warned council that there needed to be a contingency fund that could be used for any "change orders," which Foreman said was a "fact of any construction project." He went on to say that the number of changes that Eckles Group typically has in a project is lower than the industry average. He said that 5-10 percent of the total cost of the project should be set aside, and that council will be asked to approve each change in the project.

The next step, Foreman said, was to send letters to the successful bidders. In about three weeks, he said, he hopes to have final contracts ready, at which time work will be able to begin immediatley. He said that the project is estimated to take about five months, and that the building could be occupied in early October.

Foreman noted that because the majority of work to be done is inside, weather delays should not be much of an issue. Foreman also warned council not to discuss any issues with the contractors because it could cause a problem with negotiated contracts.

Council member Linda Woshner asked Foreman about the total cost for the project, including the contingency fund, the contractors, and the fee for the architects. Foreman replied that the did not have an exact number, but estimated that it would cost approximately $1.2 million.