The Blytheville Police and Fire Committee will be holding interviews with the four finalist construction companies next week to determine which one the city will hire as its construction manager to oversee the renovation of the armory building into the city’s new Justice Complex. The four finalists are Construction Network Incorporate (CNI), Baldwin and Shell Construction Company, Tate General Contractors and Nabholz Construction Services.
The companies were selected from a group of nine potential contractors that submitted bids. The committee will meet with CNI at 5 p.m. on February 12. Following the meeting with CNI, the committee will meet with Baldwin and Shell. This process will be repeated on Thursday, February 15 at the same times for Tate and Nabholz respectively.
To determine who to move forward with, the committee reviewed packets presented by each contractor, with the project Architect Todd Welch. Each packet contained information about the company and examples of their previous work. The committee then ranked each company based upon a point system designed by Welch. Each company was awarded up to 100 possible points per committee member; therefore the maximum score possible was a total of 300. Points were given for prior experience as a construction manager, demonstration of similar renovation projects, staff resources, demonstration of project cost containment, company location and experience working in Blytheville. After reviewing all nine possible companies, the committee decided to move forward with the four highest scoring contractors.
The first company the Committee will meet with, CNI, received the lowest score of the four with 185 points. CNI is based out of Jonesboro. The president of the company, Sean Stem wrote in an opening letter found in the packet, "We have had a good working relationship with the firm you have selected. In fact, CNI recently finished a very similar project in scope with Brackett-Krennerich for the Jonesboro Police Department. It is very important that there be a solid relationship of trust and respect within the project team. I commit to you that the CNI team will provide pricing and scheduling service you deserve."
On a different page that serves as a quasi-resume for Stem, it states that he has 19 previous projects with experience as a construction manager. CNI also lists projects that they have worked on such as the Jonesboro Fire Station Number Four. The initial budget for the project was $1,684,900; however, CNI has listed $1,985 of change orders, which brought the total project cost to $1,686,855. CNI also lists the Jonesboro police headquarters, which had a final budget of $1,571,191. The project is described as a 14,000 square foot remodel of existing armory including office space, dispatch center, lobby addition, motor pull remodel and exterior improvements.
The committee's second interview will be with Baldwin and Shell, which scored the highest amount of points at 280 points. Baldwin and Shell is a larger company that is based out of Little Rock, but has an office in Jonesboro that operates with projects in this region of the state. Baldwin and Shell have worked on renovations at the State Capitol building, the Lafayette Building, the Old State House and Lakeport Plantation. They also built the ASU Bioscience Institute, Osceola’s Caroll Smith Elementary School and the Marion Junior High School.
Most recently Baldwin and Shell have been involved with projects in Blytheville. Last July they began renovations on Blytheville High School’s Haley Field, installing new synthetic turf, concrete walls, a new drainage system, LED lighting, a ticket booth and fencing. Baldwin and Shell have also been hired by Blytheville Public Schools as construction manager for the new high school gymnasium, which according to Baldwin and Shell is scheduled to begin March 21 and be completed on March 20, 2019.
On Thursday, the committee will meet with Tate at 5 p.m. Tate received 255 points from the committee. The packet provided to the committee has a section specifically dedicated to construction management service qualifications. In a section titled "Critical Path Method Schedules," it reads "The Critical Path schedule places all phases of a project into sequential time segments by the order required to perform each phase, i.e. 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc…All successful jobs are scheduled like this whether it is referenced as Critical Path scheduling or not. Our firm always successfully uses this method."
Tate also talks about its cost control, which simply states that once a project is divided into bid packages, a guaranteed maximum price will be established. Tate also states that they work with subcontractors to ensure the timely submission of material submittals in order for the work of each subcontractor to move forward.
Tate has worked on projects such as the Paragould Primary School, Rivercrest Elementary School, Westside School District's Fine Arts Center and Jonesboro First United Methodist Church.
The final company that will be interviewed is Nabholz. Nabholz was given 270 points by the committee. In their packet, the first page has a section titled "The Nabholz Way", which states "Nabholz has been a regional construction leader for 69 years. We help our clients grow and prosper by committing to build our own business on the values of integrity, honesty, exceptional customer service, innovation and excellence. Every day, from our CEO's office to the project site, we strive to create exceptional value for our clients, employees and employee shareholders by maintaining an impeccable reputation and providing innovative services."
Nabholz listed some of its projects, including some that would be finished soon, as the Wynne City Hall (which had a budget of $1.8 million at 7,643 square feet), the Rogers Police and Courts Facility ($6 million budget at 47,900 square feet), Conway Central Police Facility ($6.7 million at 31,632 square feet) and two Jonesboro fire stations (Numbers Three and Four).
After all interviews are completed, the committee will have to make a recommendation to the full council regarding whom they suggest to hire for the project. The final decision will have to be approved by the full city council before the project can begin.
gwilliams@blythevillcourier.com