FORT SMITH - Fort Smith and Sebastian County will use a construction manager to assist with the planning of an aquatics center in the hope that the manager’s participation will keep the project’s cost within budget.
In separate meetings Tuesday, city directors and Quorum Court members passed similarly worded resolutions to use a construction management company for the estimated $8 million center planned at the county’s Ben Geren Regional Park just south of the Fort Smith city limit.
City directors voted 4-2 to pass the resolution with Directors Philip Merry and Pam Weber voting against it. Director George Catsavis was absent.
Weber said last week she thought the design-bid-build process could work if the designers came up with firm projections on cost.
Merry said he was concerned the 2008 Arkansas Supreme Court opinion Gatzke v. Weiss, requiring counties to enter into all construction contracts by competitive bidding, could lead to a legal challenge.
Sebastian County Judge David Hudson said Wednesday that construction managers are hired under professional service contracts, which are awarded by qualifications, not by competitive bids. City and county attorneys reviewed the law and determined the county could legally hire a construction manager, he said.
The Quorum Court passed its resolution 11-1. Quorum Court member Danny Aldridge voted against approval, and Quorum Court member Phil Hicks was absent.
Aldridge said last week that he opposed the construction-manager method because he wasn’t sure it would save money on the project. And he worried there would be a lack of transparency and fairness in awarding contracts using a construction manager.
Hudson said Wednesday steps would be taken to ensure the bidding process for construction subcontractors was transparent and that sealed bids are opened in public.
The city and county will work together over the next several weeks to recruit, interview and select a construction manager. Hudson said. City directors and Quorum Court members will have to approve the hiring contract, he said.
Hudson and City Administrator Ray Gosack have recommended the construction manager method rather than the design-bid-build process for the project. They said a construction manager would be involved in the design and planning and would be able to provide cost analysis and insights on labor, materials andwork sequencing that could keep cost from exceeding $8 million.
The city and county each have agreed to allocate $4 million to the project.
Hudson said Wednesday that the construction manager will develop accurate project cost estimates before the bidding process so officials can see whether the project cost will remain within the budget.
Under the design-bid-build method, officials wouldn’t know what the project cost would be until bids submitted by potential construction contractors were opened.
Officials have been concerned about the cost because some features in the aquatics center’s initial design were removed by aquatics consultant Larkin Aquatics of Kansas City, Mo., to bring down its cost. The features - a longer “lazy river” and dive well - were reinstated in the plans when residents complained about the removal of those features.
Reinstating the features is estimated to add $800,000 to the project cost, Larkin’s Andy Smith told officials earlier this year.
Officials agreed county and city employees will do some work on the project to keep the project cost down.The county plans to build its parking lot, and the city will extend the water and sewer lines to the site.
The county tabled a measure to allocate the additional $800,000, with the city agreeing to compensate the county for half the amount later. Hudson said the measure could be revived if costs exceed the $8 million limit.
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 05/23/2013