The bills are coming in on the Coahoma County Justice Complex and as with all multi-million-dollar building projects, there have been change orders and additions that have Supervisors scratching their head and trying to keep construction under budget.
Coahoma County Board of Supervisors discussed several bills that have come in recently and additions that apparently weren’t part of the original scope of the $12 million project to build a jail, administration building and fire station.
“I wasn’t aware of this $48,000 bill,” said Dist. 4 Supervisor Johnny Newson. “These bills come in and we are responsible for signing the check and we are the ones that need to know what they are for and what we are buying.”
Newson also said he was concerned the work, or specifically additions to the project, had not first been cleared by supervisors or put out to bid. The bill for $48,000 was for Network Ballistics to install wiring of the administration building.
County Administrator Morgan Wood explained the county does not have to bid projects under $50,000 but can seek proposals. Proposals allow for quick and efficient work to be done on a project to keep it on schedule and to not hinder other contractors waiting to start their portion of construction.
State purchasing law also excludes phone systems, fixtures, computers and wiring. The law says the county’s project administrator – required with all major construction projects in the state – also has the authority to clear additions and change-orders.
State purchasing law also allows project administrators to make purchases for items with a life expectancy of less than 20 years.
“I thought it was a ‘turn-key’ deal,” said Dist. 5 Supervisor Will Young with Dist. 1 Supervisor Pat Davis and Dist. 2 Supervisor Darrell Washington nodding and commenting in agreement.
Wood said the wiring, furniture and fixtures were not in the county’s contract to build the Justice Complex.
Wood pointed out the county has a contingency fund built into the project. Wood also said Network Ballistics, of Tupelo, is the county’s IT firm and she felt it would be wise to have the same company that is going to make the system work, install the wiring.
State purchasing law requires the county take the lowest or best bid, but contractors with a poor history of work or who do not follow bid specifications can also be denied work let by bid or proposals.
Wood, who has worked for the county for 19 years, said the procedure has not changed and all invoices and bills, change orders and proposals are public record and supervisors can look at them at any time and the public can look at them during regular office hours.
“Our office is open to (supervisors) at any point in time and all records are accessible and accurate,” said Wood. “We do have a process of checks and balances, too.”
The board instructed Wood to keep them abreast of major purchases, change orders or additions in the future.
The $12.49 million detention center was slated to open this fall, but spring rains have delayed the project repeatedly. The new jail will replace an aging facility that has roof problems. The old building has been renovated several times since it was built in 1996.
The new jail will actually be smaller than the existing facility which has 177 beds. The new jail will have 155 beds.
The county is using a general obligation bond to pay for the facility. Supervisors began looking at the possibility of a justice complex in January 2016 when they recognized increasing maintenance costs and needs to improve offices for both the sheriff’s department and justice court loomed on the horizon.
