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Mistake ups cost of county offices A misunderstanding results in a bid $30,000 under the true estimate for the remodeling The new home for several Jackson County offices, including parole and probation, will come in over budget and minus a coffee shop. Adroit Construction Co. came in as the project's low bidder with $1,862,800 last year to remodel the old Safeway building on West Main Street. However, Deputy County Administrator Dave Kanner said the figure was $30,000 short. Kanner said the error was most likely the result of miscommunication between Adroit and the construction company's architectural consultant. Thursday, commissioners agreed to split the cost with Adroit. "It's going to cost as much as $15,000 to litigate this," Kanner said. "If it did go to court, it would be a he-said, he-said situation." "I don't think Adroit is trying to rip us off," Commissioner Jack Walker said, adding that the county has always been impressed with the construction company's professionalism. "I'm just surprised we don't end up with more of these." The county building has a small retail space that officials originally hoped to lease to a coffee vendor. However, Kanner said he received no interest from the community, and added that the space will just sit empty for a while. When complete, the building will house the county's parole and probation, election and emergency management offices. More than 60 county employees will work out of the new building. Construction is expected to wrap up sometime this summer. The county bought the building for $1 million last year. In addition to Adroit's work, the county is paying Community Justice $257,177 for demolition work and other tasks. The project is paid for through the county's general fund, a rainy day fund and money previously earmarked to remodel the elections department. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.