Residents and voters in the Village of Ephraim will see some changes to their administration building this next year, as the office undergoes an internal remodel of the offices and meeting space.
The plan would reconfigure the internal use of space of the building at the top of the hill at 10005 N. Norway Street. Village administrator Brent Bristol told the Village trustees on Friday morning that staff worked out three options with chosen project management and construction firm Keller.
“We wanted that project to be something that was effective, that would serve the village for a long time, but also was affordable, was the most cost-effective option,” Bristol said.
Trustees discussed two options, with estimated construction costs of either $1.575 million for Option 1, or $1.8 million for Option 2, both with $100,000 contingencies. The remodel space includes 2,622 square feet of existing space, and adding either 450 sqft of new space in Option 1, or 818 sqft of new space in Option 2. Construction timeline would be about 6 months, for either option, and would begin in February, based on Keller’s proposed timeline.
According to information in the Village Board meeting packet, this remodel would be a comprehensive renovation of the existing 2,172 square foot facility to improve code compliance, and overall building performance. (Option 2) includes an internal ramp (rather than an external), and additional work space in an 818 sqft addition. Work would involve reconfiguration of interior spaces, upgrades to mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, and improvements to the building envelope as needed.
Keller Constriction Manager Devin Flanigan explained the inclusion of a contingency amount, especially when remodeling a decades-old building.
“Why a $100,000 contingency? With a remodel, with the age of the building, with a lot of uncertainty, I felt it was best to make sure that we can include some unknowns,” said Flanigan. “Like everyone knows, when you take on a project of a remodel, there's going to be some level of things that we run into.”
The trustees voted unanimously to approve Option 2, and they await the final details of the proposal and timeline from Keller.
