By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer
SUAMICO – After colors presented to the village board for brick and stone on the new Fire Station No. 1 didn’t receive a ringing endorsement from Village President Laura Nelson, the board approved different colors at a special meeting 10 days later.
“I don’t think I could have chosen an uglier color palette,” Nelson said at the May 4 meeting. “Gray, gray, gray.”
After receiving more color options presented May 14 by Rob Krzyzanowski of Five Bugles Design, the project’s architect, the board agreed to use the colors Inspire for the stone, Coffee Blend for the brick in the tower and a corner section, and Winter Blend for the brick above the stone and the apparatus bay.
Krzyzanowski said the different colors were the same cost.
The new Fire Station No. 1, for which work has begun on the 1.9-acre site at the intersection of Deerfield Lane and Riverside Drive, will have more than 20,000 square feet with two stories and six apparatus bays.
In addition to housing the fire department, County Rescue has entered into a 15-year lease to use designated areas of the new station and pay the village $35,000 per year, prorated, with the second floor being completed for the emergency medical service to occupy.
Overhead doors
After previously not having a qualified bid for the fire station’s overhead doors when the board approved other construction bids last month, the village rebid the project with the board approving a bid of $67,500 from Overhead Door of Appleton for the full metal doors.
Board members didn’t favor the alternative bid for an additional $47,515 to have all-glass doors because that was too expensive for them.
“It’s almost double (the cost of metal doors), plus the 2 percent (construction management) fee on top of it,” said Trustee Sky Van Rossum.
Village Administrator Alex Kaker said an option to paint the metal doors red would cost an additional $8,500.
The board didn’t commit funds for the red doors, but did agree to allow that to happen, if the Suamico Firefighters Volunteer Association would want to raise the funds.
Fire Chief Joe Bertler said red doors are used as a fire station feature, such as in the Village of Howard.
Fire station contracts
Now that construction bids have been approved following approval of the overhead doors, Kaker said the village was able to update the contract totals for Five Bugles and the project’s construction manager, Zeise Construction.
He said Zeise’s original contract applied a 2 percent construction management fee, based on a $6 million building.
But because the construction cost ended up being closer to $5 million, Kaker said the village is able to reduce the fee.
The board voted 5-2 Monday, May 18, to adjust the amount for Zeise to perform construction management work to $388,553, plus 2 percent for any future increase in the construction cost.
Kaker said Five Bugles, which was originally awarded a contract of $288,500, will receive an additional $24,305 with the firm applying a 6 percent fee to alternate bids.
The board also voted 5-2 to adjust the amount authorized for Five Bugles to $312,805, as well as authorize reimbursable expenses and 6 percent for any future increase to the construction cost.
Nelson and Trustee Michelle Eckert, who have been critical of the amount spent on the project, voted against adjusting the contract amounts for Zeise and Five Bugles.
Fire station committee
An ad-hoc construction oversight committee with five members has been formed by the board to provide financial oversight of change order requests and remaining expenditures.
Kaker, Bertler, Building Inspector Steve Dunks, Trustee Steve Andrews and Eckert will be authorized to approve any expenditures of more than $5,000, but never to exceed allotments listed in an April 29 memo from Kaker without full board approval.
Those allotments include: $320,400 for furniture, fixtures and equipment; $125,000 for fiber optics, data, air conditioning and low-voltage cabling; $8,500 for miscellaneous items such as insurance and interior signage; $16,000 for WPS costs; and a construction contingency of 5 percent of final construction costs, which was listed in the memo at $253,467.
Fire Station No. 1 is scheduled for completion in 2021.