The Barry County Commission approved requests made last week by Robert Van Putten, architect/owner of Landmark Design Group, on the renovation of the Community Building by Beckering Construction. A five percent construction contingency fund of $40,000 was approved and County Administrator Michael Brown will be able to approve changes orders up to $7,500.

 

Any change order more than $7,500 and less than $10,000 will be reviewed by the committee of the whole and change orders exceeding $10,000 will go to the full commission for a decision. The contract with Beckering now stands at $795,830, down from $808,890 after some cost savings were found. Brown said with the Community Building renovations on track, the planning and designs for improvements in the Barry County Circuit Court area will move ahead.

 

In other business, Tuesday, May 24, Brown told commissioners the final draft of the compensation study by Segal Waters Consulting Group, hired in September of 2015 to produce the study for $92,500, will be presented to the commission within 30 days.

 

Commissioners also approved:

* making temporary Office of Community Corrections (OCC) GED instructor Richard Todd Willard permanent instructor for the rest of the 2016 fiscal year, to be paid $19 an hour for up to 18 hours a week,

 

* renewing a contact with BC&BS to provide hospital and prescription services for Barry County Jail inmates from July 2016 to July 2017,

 

* budget amendment A-16, which involved $5,438 in both income and expenses, but did not affect the bottom line in the $15,393,956 budget.