Safety Complex Nears Completion

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

The board of the Municipal Building Authority of Emery County met in their regularly scheduled meeting on July 2 at 2 p.m. Those present were Commissioners Randy Johnson, Ira Hatch and Drew Sitterud. Other board members, Dennis Nelson and Sharon Jensen were also in attendance.
The first item on the agenda was the update by Todd Kitchen on the public safety complex. He said they have been taking care of the items on the punch list. “We anticipate we will probably be done by July 12 or 13 and we would like to schedule a final walk through of the project.” Everyone present agreed on a time of 9 a.m. on July 18 for the final walk through.
The only item in question at this time is the floor in the sallyport. Sahara has been researching products and recommended a floor coating to be added to the surface of the floor. It is an expensive coating but cheaper when compared to the costs of ripping and replacing the floor.
The floor would be prepared by blasting it and all the cracks would be repaired. The spray would be applied, it would be flexible and the cracks could flex. The life expectancy of this coating will be 15 plus years. This is the same type of coating that is applied in parking garages and high traffic area. Kitchen pointed out that they are willing to take care of the problem.
Commissioner Johnson said he has seen this particular product used and it is a good product. Before it could be applied the drainage problem would need to be taken care of. Kitchen said a specialist from Geneva Rock would be coming down to do a ping test to determine the integrity of the concrete.
Nelson wondered what had happened to the floor in the sallyport and how much concrete this involves. It was explained that the area is 2,200 square feet and that the concrete is cracked and has a poor finish.
The drainage problem will be fixed. The board made a decision to wait for the results of the concrete strength test before they made a decision on what direction to go with the floor.
Kitchen reported the courts building is on schedule and they should gain ground in the next couple of months. The budgets look good and a packet is being prepared which shows budget summaries and leases. Sahara is meeting with the courts people and will proceed with the budget and plan as it is written now. Kitchen pointed out the courts people want to plan for the future with the electrical capabilities of the facility and they (Sahara) have been able to accommodate that. Other items which are not in the budget but they might want to add include an elevated floor, and plasma screens on the wall for juries to look at. Conduits will be added for them. It was mentioned that in the future if the courts want to add things they must pay the cost.
Kitchen wants the line of communication to go from the courts people to the county and then to Sahara. Sahara prefers to take its direction from Emery County. A meeting between all those involved will take place in the near future.
The next item discussed was the metal storage building for the facility. It was determined that a bid package be put together so a bid can be let out on the building. Sheriff Lamar Guymon said the building would have two overhead heaters, one drive-in door, water, sewer and power. The building will be used to store all equipment belonging to the sheriff’s office.
The next item discussed was the parking lot at the care and rehabilitation center in Ferron. Two power poles have not been moved yet by Utah Power but they are expected to be moved in the near future. The parking lot is now level with the sidewalk and the commissioners said it looks good.
The next item of discussion was the incubator building. Commissioner Sitterud said he had toured the facility with Randy Jensen and a representative from Utah Power. “It will be quite an expense to get it up to standard. The roof and sewer system need major repairs. He estimated approximately $800,000 in repairs.”
Commissioner Hatch suggested maybe when a business comes our way we should gear the repairs to that business. Commissioner Sitterud said the sewer system was horrendous. Sharon Jensen said perhaps parts of the building were usable without a lot of expense. Hatch said that the building fits the need of the business that is in there now and that he has been fixing the building to meet his needs and had asked for approval so he could pour part of the floor. He has been using used oil heaters to heat the portion of the building they are using for their trucks.
Commissioner Sitterud said they needed to take a serious look before any money was invested in the building. He suggested they might be better off building a new building for the business which had been suggested by Welles Cannon in the incubator study. This business proposal was for plastic recycling and the manufacture of plastic products.
The next item was the discussion of furniture for the public safety complex. It was determined they would look at the budget and figure out how the furniture would be paid for, but Sheriff Guymon could get started with the selection of the furniture.
The next item was the approval of the bills. The bill for the incubator survey will be paid from grant money secured for the project. There was a question on the Sahara bills for the releasing of the retainage amounts. It was determined that they would pay the bills and clarify the retainage. If possible, Clerk Bruce Funk requested the bills for Sahara be turned into the clerk’s office sooner so they can be reviewed.
Commissioner Johnson said a special meeting of the MBA will need to be called on the bond when it is ready later in the month. He also said they have been given an A3 rating on the bond. The problem now is in insuring the bond. Commissioner Johnson pointed out that Emery County has a fund balance without any debts and is in good standing for the bond. He said the county will get a better rate if it is insured. He said sometimes they see one single large taxpayer in the county for our tax base and it scares them off.
The next item on the agenda was the approval of the minutes for the May 7 and June 4 meetings. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the municipal building authority will be on August 6 at 2 p.m in the commission chambers.