Status meetings will take place weekly rather than semimonthly now that renovations to the Memorial Opera House are about to move indoors. Project manager The Skillman Corporation said Tuesday morning at the Porter County Board of Commissioners meeting that all permits have been received from the city of Valparaiso.
Work will begin on May 13 after the final curtain closes on the spring production on May 12. A team of Skillman representatives gave monthly updates to the commissioners on all three concurrent county capital improvement projects: the MOH, Highway Department Garage and Porter County Jail.
Paul Todoroski, the project manager for Skillman on the highway garage, touched next on the demolition last week of the sign shop and salt dome by county highway department employees at the site of the new garage. “It’s going to save the project quite a bit of money by them doing the work by themselves,” he said.
Porter County Highway Garage staff tear down the sign shop and salt dome at headquarters at 1955 S. Indiana 2 in Valparaiso on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (Shelley Jones/for Post-Tribune)
Board of Commissioners Vice President Barb Regnitz, R-Center, asked his opinion of the proposed new building. “You’ve seen the plans? They’re good?” she asked.
“They look great,” Todoroski replied. “They are in our estimator’s hands. He hasn’t asked any questions in three days which is a good sign.”
The Porter County Jail renovation has been divided into two parts: Project 1 and Project 2. Project 1 encompasses the reroofing and fascia. The higher portion of the roof will get a standing seam roof, while the flat portion will be coated in rubber.
Project 1 is budgeted for $6.5 million, a minority portion of the $25 million bond the county reissued after the original jail bond was paid off in January. The $18.5 million balance will be used for the highway garage.
Also within the $6.5 million expenditures have been repairs Skillman has referred to as “mission critical” items that cannot wait, such as the replacement of two of the jail’s four industrial water heaters.
Project 2 is expected to be paid for out of an as-yet-unissued second bond that may be issued 366 days after the first. It would encompass all interior upgrades that include mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.
While Project 2 is off in the future, Skillman recommends moving forward on project development. DLZ Engineering has completed the schematic design for the phase. “That’s the whole scope of what we do, is make sure the design meets the budget,” said Scott Cherry of Skillman.
Regnitz said opening of bids for the various projects may be moved to a separate meeting from regular commissioners meetings. “We’re hoping to get 50, 60 bids,” Todoroski explained of the highway garage. “It might get pretty intense.”
Cherry said there will likely be 12 bid categories for Project 2 of the jail renovation alone. “You try to get two to three bidding per category,” he said. “That means you’re getting good competition.”
Shelley Jones is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
