FARMINGTON — Franklin County commissioners said they will seek a better price with the low bidder to build the Franklin County Dispatch Center after the offer Tuesday came in at $22,600 more than the building’s budget.

Taylor Made Homes, in Wilton, submitted the lowest of 15 bids at $498,000. The bid from S.J. Wood Construction, in Winthrop, was the next-lowest at $541,615, which was $43,000 more than the proposed budget.

The commissioners plan to seek a smaller, cheaper protective enclosure for the center’s generator or consider not building a protective enclosure around the generator.

Commissioner Gary McCrane, of Jay, said the commissioners also would consider postponing $10,000 in spending by waiting to pave outside the center until it can be budgeted in the next fiscal year.

They also said additional funds could come from the budget for engineering the project. The winning bid, from Plymouth Engineering Inc., was $14,000 less than the original budgeted amount.

The prices bid for the dispatch center, to be built across from the sheriff’s office on County Way, did not include the cost of having Central Maine Power Co. route an underground power line to the center.

There a range of more than $210,000 among the bids, with J.M. Brown General Contractor, in Hampden, submitting the highest one at $712,592.

The building is scheduled to be finished by July 9, 2013, but is expected to be functional by April, project engineer Keith Ewing said.

Kaitlin Schroeder — 861-9252
kschroeder@mainetoday.com


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.