By CARL E. FEATHER - Staff Writer - cfeather@starbeacon.com
JEFFERSON — Resolutions passed by the Board of Commissioners will allow the relocation of county-owned sanitary sewer infrastructure to be rebid with new engineering specifications.
Larry Meaney, director of the county’s department of environmental services, said the .6-mile improvement project between Woodman Avenue and North Bend Road was going to cost the county $187,700. The county previously agreed to move 11 manholes as part of the Ohio Department of Transportation’s $2.95-million widening project on that stretch of highway.
The county was given the option of moving the infrastructure itself or having it bid as part of the project. The county went with the second option because the estimated cost was $60,00. However, when the bids were opened in January 2009, the cost came in 209 percent over the estimate.
Meaney said the county went back to the drawing board and re-engineered the manholes to reduce the cost and create a more accessible design. The new estimate is for $71,000.
Commissioners on Thursday appropriated the additional $10,900 needed to complete the work. They previously paid the $60,760.
“It will go out to bid and hopefully (the new bid) will stay in the ballpark,” Meaney said.
In other action, commissioners:
n Approved a contract with the state auditor for the county’s financial auditing services. The cost is not to exceed $159,733 with an expected delivery date of June 30.
n Approved a renewal of a software maintenance agreement with Maxims for the Department of Job and Family Services;
n Reduced load limits on 14 Rome Township road effective Feb. 15 through May 15. The trustees requested the limits be reduced in order to prevent damage to them during the spring season.
Affected roads are Johnson, Fillingham, Dodge, Allen, Ketchum, Laskey, Cook-Crosby, Price, Station, Callender, Bogue and Chester, plus Wilderness Trail and Boy Mar Drive.
n Approved the transfer of $249,219.62 from the county’s bonded debt fund to make a payment on the lodge debt to Huntington Bank.
