COLDWATER (WTVB) - It appears Branch County will avoid a lawsuit over part of a bill it hasn’t paid yet for the new courthouse parking lot. At issue is an invoice that was submitted apparently after what was thought to be the final bill from the general contractor for the project that was completed last fall.
It was to cover the costs of hauling dirt to a landfill in Barry County, more material than was anticipated when they tore up the old lot. The additional costs were 12-thousand dollars.
Commissioner Jerry Hubbard, chair of the Board’s House committee, told the committee yesterday that hopefully they now have a parking lot that will last for 50 years. He said he was concerned that if nothing was done to the lot, the seepage spots that were underneath it would have begun to encroach on the corners of the courthouse and library. Hubbard said it’s unfortunate that the entire project cost another 178-thousand dollars over the initial estimate, but at least it’s fixed, or hopefully fixed.
The committee recommended the bill be paid, pending the receipt of a final amended invoice. The full board will consider it later this month
