The Starkville Board of Aldermen unanimously approved a motion made by Vice Mayor and Ward 6 Alderman Roy A’. Perkins which states the contractors for the construction of the new Starkville Police Department headquarters will fully eradicate water from the building’s basement at no additional cost to the city.
SPD Chief Frank Nichols, architect Gary Shafer and contractor Gary Weathers provided a status update of the new project, which is behind schedule following flooding issues.
After a photo presentation of the building, representatives discussed its recommendation for combatting the flooding problem. Their recommendation is to install a sump pump which has the ability to remove 110 gallons of water per minute.
Perkins addressed the contractors by saying the city entered into a contract that stated the contractor would cover the entire demolition and renovation, exterior restoration, site work including new structural, mechanical, electrical and fire protection.
“I don’t care if water was there when the building was started, that’s the purpose of the contract,” Perkins said. “The taxpayers should fire all of us if we accept a building that has water on the floor.”
Weathers addressed the board and said being able to work on this project has been a great privilege and the outcome is tremendous.
Weathers said he understands the frustration with these problems, but he is working with the drawings that were given to him and there was not a plan in place for this problem.
After assessing the flooding, he said that the sump pump is the best way to resolve the issue.
Weathers also said the pumps will be underground, therefore not visible when in the building. Although the sump pumps are not a 100 percent guarantee there will not be water problems again, he said in his experience he has never had a problem with a pump.
Perkins pushed that the board takes note that the motion confirms that there will be a 12-month warranty on both materials and work labor. In his motion he also extended the substantial completion date for 60 days.
“I want to make sure that we are legally protected,” Perkins said. Despite the problems with flooding, the board is pleased with how the new police department turned out.
Weathers agreed to the language of the motion.
OTHER BUSINESS
•Ward 5 Alderman Patrick Miller said the city needs to focus on bettering its social media presence. He said by doing this, the city will be able to better engage with its citizens.
• Aldermen gave public feedback on their experience at last Friday’s work session. All of the comments made were positive. The only negative comment came from the problem of scheduling convenient times for each alderman.
• Aldermen discussed travel expenses. It felt there should be some type of presentation or showing of what the aldermen learned from their travel. This mainly concerns travel for conferences.
•The board concluded the second public hearing for enacting a six-month moratorium on billboards.