Representatives from McKinstry presented the Erath County Commissioners Court with the newest information on the Joint DispatchandEmergencyOperations Center project at its Tuesday, May 27 meeting.
McKinstry which was awarded the project in March after a competitive bid process is using a Design Build process and detailed the advantages to the court.
The total project delivery speed is 33.5% faster, construction speed is 12% faster, 6.1% lower unit cost, 5.2% less cost increases/change orders and 11.4% less schedule delays.
The project is a joint venture between all emergency services both by the city of Stephenville and Erath County.
“This has been a great partnership with the county and the city,” Gabriela Fierro, McKinstry Senior Account Executive said. “Everyone has been so responsive.”
Throughout the project there has been and will continue to be an emergency board utilized comprised of both city and county officials.
The project is converting the old tax office into the Joint Dispatch and Emergency Operations Center project including a facility expansion.
Some of the items McKinstry is focusing on for the project include mission-critical power by recommending the installation of a backup generator, communications infrastructure, resiliency, security and access control.
McKinstrylaidoutthepreliminary timeline for the court with the project start of January 2025, conceptual design taking place in March-May 2025, schematic designs May-June 2025, the implementation contract being signed in July and pre-construction, procurement and construction taking place July-December 2025.
The facility is anticipated to be completely operational by early June 2026.
Preliminary designs show covered parking for dispatchers entering the building, more spaces for dispatch offices, a tactical briefing room, a break room, a large EOC command rooms and a secure outdoor eating space.
Preliminary estimates on the project range from $3.1 million to $ 4.1 million.
Fierro explained that the wide range in estimates would continue to be narrowed down towards the lower end as the project moved forward.
“Safety and it being operational are the most important things,” she said.
The court also received a clean audit from Eide Bailey who presented the county’s 2023-24 Fiscal Year audit.
Presenters stated they were giving the county an ‘unmodified opinion’ which is the highest opinion that can be received. They also complimented the county for keeping adequate reserves in the fund balance and being in compliance with all state and federal guidelines in regards to grants.
Subdivision coordinator Jason Gardner presented the court information on groundwater availability in the vicinity of Homeland Estates Subdivision in Precinct 3.
Gardner explained according to Texas Local Government Code 232, if there are more than 11 lots in a project a groundwater availability study must be conducted.
If a project has less than that, he said, if credible evidence is provided that there is adequate groundwater in the vicinity and the court rules that, then the study is not needed.
In the case of this project, Gardner there were city wells 600 feet off the property which to him was adequate information that there was water.
The court ruled that this was sufficient evidence after consulting with the county attorney present at the meeting.
Several items from both the tax office and elections office were zero valued so they could be disposed of since they were no longer needed or usable.