FORESIGHT 2020?

Construction on Mono County office building is underway 

Construction on Mono County’s Civic Center located between the police station and hospital in Mammoth Lakes started up again on April 8. 

At the Mono Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, April 16, County Public Works Director Tony Dublino admitted they were a week behind schedule. They were supposed to start on April 1. 

“The target date of completion is still February 2020,” Dublino said. 

In the fall of last year, the county’s design-build contractor Roebbelen began grading the site. Workers cleared snow off the site and are now re-compacting and excavating the site to prepare it for more grading and the pouring of the foundation. 

This is considered Phase I of the project.There are three phases total. Phase II is the construction of the building’s shell. Dublino called it the “exoskeleton.” The county anticipated submitting plans for Phase II yesterday. Review of those plans is due by May 13. If approved and a permit is issued, Roebbelen can start construction on the same day. 

Phase III consists of interior touches and smaller exterior stuff. 

Earlier this year, Mono County Public Works Department along with Roebbelen finalized the floor plans for the building.There are two stories with a semi-open floor plan. 

As of Tuesday, April 16, the project is estimated to be $856,000 or 4% over budget. The total budget is $20.5 million. 

Dublino provided a “so-called value engineering spreadsheet”, which outlined costs already cut and potential cuts to the budget. Public Works and Roebbelen have already cut $705,132.50 from the project. Those cuts include $134,093.75 for wood trim on the outside of the inside the building, and $9,900 in soffit costs. A soffit is the underside of an overhanging structure. Think a deck or the overhang of a roof.   

Other costs were not as ornamental. 

Public works and Roebbelen eliminated an American Disabilities Act (ADA) walkway from Sierra Park Road to the main entrance that was going to cost $94,192. Dublino told supervisors that the design for the pathway would encroach on Town of Mammoth Lakes land. After discussions that involved the Town’s  Sandra Moberly and Engineering Manager Haislip Hayes, it was decided to eliminate the walkway. 

“The town was not particularly interested in having that pathway on their property,” Dublino said.

“We all kind of agreed that it was just as reasonable to provide a legally adequate ADA access from the Thompson Road side and just completely abandon that access coming off Sierra Park.”

The building will have one ADA access from Thompson Way. 

A covered walkway on the east side of the building that would lead into the District Attorney’s office was also eliminated. That would have cost $37,002. It wouldn’t have been a public access point.

“I think it is fair to say that what we are taking off of the building are non-critical improvements. What we would consider to be cosmetic improvements,” Dublino said. 

He added. “We’ve tried to focus on items that our facilities staff are well positioned to come in after the fact and make the improvements in due time.”

The county decided not to spend $46,200 on bullet proof glass. Instead they will remove bullet proof glass being used at county offices in the Sierra Center Mall and install it in the new building. 

“Our intent remains to preserve the project budget,” Dublino told the Board of Supervisors.

Supervisor Bob Gardner said, “Clearly we’ve stated over and over again that our priorities are getting it done on time and staying within the $20.5 million target.

Supervisor Gardner asked that Dublino create a list that would show how each cut is helping the project move along. Supervisor Stacy Corless added that she’d like that list to include rationale for those decisions.

She said, “People get very anxious about what their office space is going to look like.”