CHAMBERSBURG -- Franklin County Commissioners plan to spend $67.7 million of taxpayers’ money on a courthouse and office building.
That's the official cost, but the actual cost is a bit more.
Architects, engineers, financial advisors, contractors and consultants will carve out their shares of what will be one of the largest public works projects ever in Franklin County. The county already has committed to spending more than $1 million in professional feesto get the project rolling.
Demolition in the first block of North Main Street is expected before the end of the year so a new courthouse can be built. The county also will construct an administrative building at North Second and Grant streets.
The county project anchors the recentinvestment of more than $100 million in private and public properties at the core of downtown Chambersburg.
Commissioners have concentrated their efforts in the downtown core since rejecting an earlier proposal in 2010 for a new judicial center. Theyspent more than $5 million preparing for the courthouse project. They spent $3.7 million to buy properties around the current courthouse. They spent about $2 million to renovate or demolish some of the buildings to get temporary space for court operations.
By including the cost of real estate andthe cost of borrowing, the actual price for the courthouse and administrative building will be closer to $74 million. Included is the 2009 purchase of the former Sheetz convenience store at North Second and Grant streets.
Construction and demolition will account for the lion’s share of project costs, but others items add up to more than 15 percent of the estimated price.
About $4.2 million is to be spent on professional servicesby outside firms and $850,000 on the county's administrative costs.
Another $3.1 million will pay for furnishings. A $3.6 contingency is budgeted to cover the unexpected.
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Construction
The demolition, renovation and construction will cost an estimated $56 million.
Project Manager John Hart said construction contracts will be bid with five prime contractors – general, plumbing, electrical, climate control (HVAC) and elevator.
“Contracts will be bid according to county code,” he said. “Local vendors are welcome to submit bids.”
L. Michael Ross, president of the Franklin County Area Development Corp., said he expects the county to receive several bids for each contract.
“The impact of this will be very beneficial to construction contractors who typically hire locally,” Ross said. “Whether they will be Franklin County firms remains to be seen. Clearly, there are a number of companies in the county that can do this and do it within budget.”
The lowest qualified bidders who meet bid specifications will get the building contracts.
That’s not the rule for contracted service professionals, such as designers, consultants and financial advisers.
The county code allows Pennsylvania counties to hire professional services without going through a formal bid process. Franklin County has relied on professionals with familiar names, all with local track records.
The project includes $3.1 million for buying furniture, fixtures and equipment.
County purchases exceeding $18,500 trigger competitive bidding, but the county can also buy from companies that contract with the state.
The county bought $31,000 in furniture from a state contractor in 2012 as part of the interim solution to courthouse overcrowding and security. The state got three quotes and went with the lowest from a firm in Hagerstown, Md.
More:Franklin County Courthouse project gets green light, but parking questions remain
Overseers
Commissioners have two people ultimately responsible for the project -- former County Administrator John Hart and consultant John Boozer. Together the overseers are costing the county about $192,000 a year.
If the project lasts the expected three years, their construction management fees could run to around $600,000. By the industry rule of thumb, management fees would run $2 million to $3.4 million.
County Commissioner DavidKeller said the county will be gettingexperienced project management at a discounted price.Construction project management fees typically range between 3 percent and 5 percentof total project cost for jobs similar to the Court Facility Improvement Project.
Hart, the project manager,represents the county through thelifespan of theproject. He will oversee all elements of the project from budgeting to occupancy. Hartcoordinates schedules, facilitatesprogramming and bidding processes, helps to secure funding, finalizescontracts, findstransitional space for county workers, makes presentations to the public and keepscontractors on schedule. He is responsible for maintaining county operations during construction.
Boozer of Franklin AdvisoryLLC will manage all of the construction and contractors working on the project. As program and construction manager he will evaluate bids, review specs and construction documents, and oversee construction and value engineering.Franklin Advisory ensure the use of best practicesand the project's overall integrity.
The aim of construction management is to construct quality buildings while staying on budget, according to Keller.
Commissioners in January created the positionfor Hart, who had served for 30 years as county administrator and chief clerk. He is paid $75 an hour without pension and health benefits to work as program manager. If he works his annual maximum of 1,000 hours, his pay will be $75,000 in 2018.
More:Franklin County to hire experts to oversee courthouse project
Commissioners in March approved a contract to pay $9,750 a month to Franklin Advisory LLC, whose sole proprietor is John Boozer of Chambersburg. A full year will cost the county $117,000. Franklin Advisory’s compensation is to be renegotiated for the construction phase. Boozerhas said he has a team of 18 experts available.
Boozer, past president of Paul E. Lehman Inc. of Chambersburg, has worked as “clerk of the works” on construction projects for FCADC. He’s also consulted for Chambersburg Area School District, the Capitol Theater and the sale of the former Scotland School for Veterans Children. A past chairman of the Greater Chambersburg Chamber of Commerce, Boozer serves on the board of directors of Patriot Federal Credit Union.
Seed money
So far, the commissioners have spent about a million dollars. They’ve committed to several arrangements:
- Noelker and Hull Associates Inc., Chambersburg, got a $265,000 contract for a rough layout of county offices and courtrooms in a new judicial building and a renovated Courthouse Annex. The firm subcontracts with Silling Architects – a Charlestown, W. Va., firm with a reputation for designing judicial centers – and with civil engineer Dennis E. Black Engineering Inc. of Chambersburg. The county is currently negotiating with Noelker and Hull for professional services related to building the judicial building and remodeling the Courthouse Annex, Hart said. Noelker and Hull was the architect on renovating the Coyle Free Library in Chambersburg and Glatfelter Hall at Gettysburg College. The firm previously worked with the county to convert the former Junior Hose Co. 2 Firehouse into hearing rooms for divorce and juvenile proceedings.
- Susquehanna Accounting and Consulting Solutions Inc., Harrisburg, was paid $66,987 to analyze the cost of plans to consolidate operations. The information is expected to improve processes and to save money, Hart said. Other counties and municipalities in Pennsylvania have relied on Susquehanna Accounting for audits and budgeting advice.
- Commissioners in May 2016 agreed to a$5,000-a-month-plus-expenses contract with GMS Funding Solutions, Carlisle, to pursue state and federal grants. The contract proposes that the county apply for a grant from the state’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program. The county recently was turned down for $5 million in 2017 RACP funds, but has reapplied for 2018 funds. GMS, founded by Harrisburg attorney G. Bryan Salzmann, has been the grant writer for several municipalities in the region. GMS helped get grants for many projects including the extensions of Parkwood and St. Paul drives in Chambersburg and the ventilation of truck bays at two stations of the Chambersburg Fire Department.
- The county is also contracting with Dennis E. Black for civil engineering and land development planning, Hart said.
- The county spent $565,695 to borrow $55 million. The cost of borrowing is includedthe bond issue and notin the project costs. The county accepted the offer ofJanney Montgomery Scott LLC.PFM Financial Advisors, Harrisburg, managed the bond issue.
Architectural and engineering fees for the projectare estimated at $4.2 million, or 6 percent of the total cost.
The county's administrative costs are estimated around $850,000, or under 2 percent of the total. The administrative costs include fees for testing of building materials, consulting fees, permitting costs andmoving expenses.
It's big
The Franklin County Court Facility Improvement Project is a large public works project.
To compare:
- Recent local public projects cost a fraction of the county project -- $39 million Chambersburg regional wastewater plant, the $7.7 million Chambersburg water park, the $9.5 million Chambersburg borough hall addition and $8.5 million Marion Elementary School.
- Other Pennsylvania counties have tackled the issue of outdated and inefficient courtrooms. Pike County recently centralized its court system in an $8 million addition to its 1873 courthouse. A $17 million Crawford County judicial center opened in 2017. Bucks County spent $86 million in 2015 for a judicial center with 14 courtrooms. Montgomery County plans to redevelop its county campus by 2023 with a $220 million judicial center. The tab is running at more than $160 million for a new federal courthouse at 6thand Reilly streets in Harrisburg.
- The white-columned Franklin County Courthouse that was rebuilt immediately after the Civil War cost $52,683, according to the History of Franklin County (1887) by Warner-Beers. That’s three-quarters of a million dollars in today’s dollars.
Project in a nutshell
A three-floor courthouse will be built in the first block of North Main Street after the commissioner’s building is demolished.
The 1865 Courthouse on Memorial Square and adjacent Courthouse Annex on Lincoln Way East will get minor renovations.
The Administrative Annex, 218 N. Second St., will be demolished and a new one-story administration building will be constructed nearby at the corner of North Second and Grant streets.
A building that the county rents across Grant Street from the site for its new administration building will be renovated. The county has the option to buy the property in 10 years.
The project addresses long-standing concerns about security, inadequate space and inefficiencies from fragmented county operations. Consolidating operations is expected to save about $400,000 a year for the next 20 years.
The county currently relies on the expense of adding sheriff’s deputies to secure county offices scattered throughout several buildings.
The commissioner’s building, the former Chambersburg Trust building, does not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
