On Monday, the Weld County Board of Commissioners approved the facilities director hiring two firms to examine and calculate the full costs — to include infrastructure — for a new judicial center, whether it is built on O St. in north Greeley or in downtown Greeley.
“We have presentations and estimates on the cost of the building itself, regardless of where it is built,” said Commissioner Chair Perry Buck. “Now what we need are the costs to actually get the building running at either location — road improvements, water and sewer lines, etc. These firms are going to research that for us.”
RJA Engineering and PCL Construction have been retained by the county to research and verify the numbers presented to the board as well as compile costs for the civil engineering work that needs to be done in both locations.
“At first glance, for example, it may appear cheaper to build a new justice center on O St., because there wouldn’t be any building demolition costs, but the county would have to pay for perhaps one mile of water and sewer line to get the new building. We are trying to get an apples-to-apples comparison. There are infrastructure costs that need to be calculated into the equation so we, as a board, can make the best decision for the county overall,” said Commissioner Pro Tem Scott James.
The firms will work together and present their report to commissioners in May.
