Bids opened for Jacksonville public safety complex

Jacksonville officials opened bids Thursday for construction of a new public safety complex receiving a bid to do the work at a price Mayor Johnnny Smith believes they can afford.

Gadsden-based Boatner Construction Co. provided a base bid of $10.6 million, beating the next-to-lowest bid by about $250,000, and the company could begin building as early as next month.

Though the low bid is higher than the city’s stated budget of $10 million, officials said Boatner’s price is still affordable. The city has as much as $13 million to spend on the project.

The project, some five years in the planning,  was stalled early on as the city tried to find a spot to build the new complex, ultimately settling on a lot behind Walmart on the cities southside near Jacksonville High School. It stalled again, when drawings by Florida-based Architects Design Group produced cost estimates that were well over budget.

The first estimate, calculated more than a year ago, was $17.2 million. After the second estimate came in at $14.1 million, the City Council nixed its contract with Design Group, and signed a new contract with Gadsden’s McElrath and Oliver Architects.

In September 2013, the city approved a 1 cent sales tax increase to fund both the public safety complex and to help pay for the new elementary school. Revenue raised from that tax will be used to help pay for a $18 million bond, about $12 million of which is for the safety complex and $5 million of which is being set aside for the school project.

Though Boatner has been identified as the low bidder, the council must select the company in a meeting before the contract between the city and the company can be finalized.