Fannin County commissioners have given their unanimous go ahead to enter into a contract with TSW as the architectural firm for the new Fannin County library.
Contract acceptance came during the Tuesday, January 9, commission meeting.
County officials initially indicated their desire to go with TSW at their November 14 meeting, but the contract needed “clarification,” Commission Chairman Jamie Hensley said.
“They’ve been wonderful to work with as to what needed to be in the contract,” County Attorney Lynn Doss said Tuesday.
The revised deal sets the county’s all-in construction budget at $3.6 million, which is to include all applicable fees including TSW’s 8.5%. Another $400,000 is set aside in the contract for the county to pay for furnishings. These figures bring the county’s all-in library budget to $4 million. This is the figure Commission Chairman Jamie Hensley has been steadfast about from the start of negotiations.
Among the questions arising from the original contract, all fees including the architect’s cost, were in the county’s $4 million price plus $400,000 for furniture. This would have placed the county’s investment at $4.4 million. Hensley and Post 2 Commissioner Glenn Patterson were emphatic that the extra $400,000 would not be paid by taxpayers. They said the library board would have to come up with the money, or any additional funding over $4 million.
Now, the county will pay for the furnishings, but will put less money into constructing the building.
Beginning with $4 million, reducing that by $400,000 for furnishings, $306,000 for TSW’s fees, and $75,000 for the cost of initial drawings, approximately $3.2 million is left for the building itself.
Based on initial construction estimates of $400 per square foot, the size of the new library will be approximately 8,000 square feet. Originally, county and library officials talked about building a 10,000 square foot facility.
The new contract does not specify either the amount of square footage or the number of stories.
The new contract establishes the county as the ultimate authority in the decisions made for the library project. Additionally, the contract states that TSW cannot go over the set construction price when drawing up their plans.
TSW’s 8.5% of the all-in library cost for their architectural work will remain the same whether construction falls under their supervision or the use of Construction Manager at Risk (CMR).