By REID TUCKER
The second round of bidding for the renovation project at Paxton Town Hall paid off, as the Town Council approved a bid of $141,500 on the construction.
The board voted 3-0 (Councilmen Bobby Kemp and Travis McMillan were not present at the Sept. 15 meeting) to give the nod to Bonifay’s KLB Contracting, LLC., which will handle the project involving hurricane-proofing the Town Hall buildings and installing a new roof on the structure. KLB was the lowest of two bidders for the project, beating out its competitor by a reported $50,000.
Jones-Phillips & Associates, Inc.’s Bob Jones, the city’s economic and community development consultant and grant administrator, advised the Council to avail itself of the right to draft a letter clarifying an additional invoice of $3,800 for extra design services necessitated by the inclusion of a new roof. KLB’s rate of $95 per hour to cover the extra service was questioned by the Council, and Jones described the 40 hours estimated to complete the design revisions as “excessive.” City Attorney Clayton Adkinson was directed by the board members to draft the letter asking for justification for the invoice, but the Council approved the contract between the city and KLB, with the two entities set to meet this week to discuss the plan of action on the construction.
Adkinson also had more good news for the Council, saying that city water customer Randy Fuller had agreed to meet with him regarding the release form requested by the city back in July. Fuller is stilled owed $1,151.54 that was mistakenly collected in the form of utility fees assessed by electric provider Gulf Power over a period of years. He declined to sign the agreement, which would serve as a record of payment showing public funds would be spent, as well as waiving his right to seek additional damages from the city. Adkinson is hopeful that a mutually satisfactory agreement could be reached between the city and Fuller when the two men meet.
In other Paxton news, Billing Clerk Judy Williams said the city would apply for a Northwest Florida Water Management District grant to cover the 25-percent match of a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant secured for water system upgrades. Finally, the board called a special meeting on Sept. 30 at 4:05 p.m. to formally adopt the finalized Fiscal Year 2016 budget and to approve over-expenditures in the current budget.
