The Barren County Project Development Board (PDB) met Wednesday, March 13th, with a majority of its members attending via zoom. The group is beginning to see the fruits of their labor as architect and construction reports make the new justice center become more tangible every meeting.
In the Construction Manager update Tommy Gumm, CEO of Alliance Corporation, had said that the company will begin placing a fence around the area that will house the new justice center Monday, March 18th. Once the fence has been erected Gumm says that physical demolition will begin soon after. This development had come after Gumm had received a construction amendment from Mark Bannister, the project coordinator. Gumm stated that he had already began to move forward and had sent out sub-contracts for the fence and demolition work.
Another step that brings the PDB closer to the new center came at the past Monday, Glasgow City Council meeting, where the council agreed to two ordinances which will shut down portions of Ford and Water St. to accommodate construction crews.
As with most things, this good news was tempered by an inconvenience in the architect report.
The architect working with PDB, Jody Driggs, stated that the geotechnical engineers that were consulted have finished phase 1 of their testing and while more testing is needed to ensure the integrity of the structure, the engineers believe that a micropyle foundation instead of the rock foundation was needed due to areas of “soft and saturated” soils that were found at the location.
Driggs assured the board that this was a minor setback, and that the news should not impede the strides the board has made in actualizing the new building. Driggs stated that the change may affect costs but that, “No one has enough information at the moment to comment.”
Driggs, sharing his screen with the board pointed out that his firm offers a mockup of their designs so that clients can get a better idea of what floor plans will look like, should the board agree, he was eager to collaborate with Gumm on getting the mockup constructed.
City attorney Rich Alexander said, “This would be a great opportunity for members to participate in the process a little bit.” Driggs pointed out that the mockup is also a great way for officials and employees of the court to come together and share ideas and suggestions based on the wide array of responsibilities that are carried out in the justice system. Judge Executive Jamie Bewley-Byrd observed that the Barren County Emergency Management building could be utilized as it is a mostly vacant property. The board unanimously agreed that the mockup would be a beneficial step to take, but no time frame was given for when the exhibition would take place.
Also, within Driggs’ report he suggested that rather than meeting biweekly, the group instead could meet monthly, as he believes that a monthly meeting would allow for more substantial reports from Gumm and himself. This was pushed back on by a couple of members with Judge Gabe Pendleton being one of the first to express his concern with a new schedule.
These concerns were mirrored by Judge John Alexander, who would rather wait until the project is more concrete before the board considers this change.
Before adjourning, members confirmed that their next meeting will be held on March 27th.
