GATE CITY — Renovations of the historic Scott County Courthouse are ready to move forward after county officials signed off on the project late last week.
After two rounds of bidding, the county chose to award the project to Chilhowie-based Branson Construction.
The winning bid came in at $194,835, an amount that Scott County Administrator Kathie Noe said was substantially lower than those submitted during the earlier round of bidding.
“The first time the bids were considerably over our budget,” Noe said. “So we went out to bid again, and this is what it came back as. Overall, we’re satisfied with the bid, and we think it will work out well for us.”
Although the bids were lower this time around, Noe said the final price tag was still roughly $20,000 more than the amount budgeted for the project.
“It’s a little bit over our budget, but we’ll find some other areas that we can take it from,” Noe said.
The most needed repairs for the courthouse, which has been in use since it was constructed in 1829, were initially estimated to run $210,000 when they were approved by the Scott County Board of Supervisors in the spring of 2011.
The project, which contains three separate phases, will address issues with the facility’s parapet, outdoor stairs and bell tower.
“All of this work that we are doing is on the outside of the building,” Noe said. “It’s just deteriorating because it’s been out in the weather and elements for all these years. So we’re going to have it refurbished so it can be as close to its original state as possible.”
The parapet renovations are expected to run just over $93,000, while repairs to outdoor stair and lighting and rehabilitation of the bell tower are slated to cost $38,000 and $63,500, respectively.
While the project is ready to move forward, Noe said it could still take some time for actual work to begin at the site.
“When we were talking to the engineers when we first decided we were going to accept this, they were telling us it could be at least a month before they got started,” Noe said. “Once the contracts are signed, they have to order all the parts, and it could take quite awhile before all of the parts could get in for them to start.”
Noe said the work should cause minimal distractions and disturbances at the courthouse, although there could be unanticipated issues that arise once the work begins.
“People will be able to go in and out like they’re used to doing,” Noe said. “They’re going to try and ensure the least amount of interruption.”
Noe did say that the employee parking area behind the courthouse would be inaccessible for the duration of the renovation since it will be used as a staging area for equipment.