New fire station plans to get revamp in New Kent

Sometimes when a project has to move forward, it has to take a couple of steps back.

That’s the route New Kent supervisors elected to go when appropriating $126,000 into what is considered as a revamp to a proposed fire station in the Talleysville area of the county.

County leaders have remained steadfast on a $2.2 million price tag for the new station. However, an update provided by fire chief Rick Opett and Evans Construction president Chase Evans last month revealed a figure nearing $2.5 million.

While minor adjustments and recommendations were made in dialogue among the parties, county administrator Rodney Hathaway recommended contributing more money into the architecture and designing of the building to drop the cost of the project.

“I understand the board’s concerns about this project,” Hathaway commented at the June 28 work session. “Speaking with the contractor, they said could do the project for $2.2 million without a contingency fund.

“Staff and myself believes that by investing more money into the design of the building that we can come up with a building that meets the county’s needs and still stays within our budget,” the administrator concluded.

Hathaway believes the move will assist in finding areas to reduce the square footage of the building. As part of the process, supervisors also voted unanimously to hire Hobbs Management LLC, a consulting firm that has specialized in architectural plans, to assist with the new building’s layout.

The appropriation of $126,000 is part of the $2.2 million designated for the project. The facility it tentatively scheduled to open in Summer 2018.