County awards bids for Cullowhee rec center

By Lisa Majors-Duff

Contracts were awarded (subject to approval by the county attorney) to Monteith Construction Corp. of Monroe, which submitted a low bid of $1,145,700 for the general construction work; to Price Piping Co. of Asheville, which turned in a low bid of $83,083 for the plumbing; to Martin Heating and Air Conditioning, which submitted a low bid of $95,400; and to Haynes Electrical Construction Corp., with a low bid of $146,200.

The total contract cost is approximately $94,000 under the budget estimated by Padgett and Freeman, said Craig Dobbin, an architect with the Asheville firm. Construction could begin later this month, he said.

The Cullowhee multi-purpose facility will include a 13,362-square-foot gymnasium with weight room, programming and meeting space, locker rooms, restrooms, office areas, storage space and a folding stage. Helping to pay for the new recreation center is a $250,000 N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund grant, which is being matched with $996,227 from the county.

A ceremony to present county Recreation department director Jeff Carpenter with the $250,000 PARTF grant is scheduled for this Saturday, Oct. 14, during Soccerfest in Cullowhee, was originally scheduled for Sept. 23.

In other action last week, commissioners approved tax collector Beverly Buchanan's monthly report, which included a note to indicate recently mailed tax bills totaled $13,923,739.79. She also reported that her office has collect $395,000 in delinquent taxes since March as a result of salary garnishments and bank account attachments.

"You are doing a great job," Commissioner Roberta Crawford told the tax collector. On a related subject, commissioners approved an order empowering the tax collector to collect taxes as filed by the tax assessor.

On a recommendation of the county's Revolving Loan Committee, commissioners approved a revised request from the Stovall family to release 15 acres from more than 452 acres used as collateral on a $1.6 million loan. The Stovalls borrowed the funds in April 1999 to expand their Sylva business, Southern Lumber Co. In addition to borrowing funds from the county, the Stovalls also received loans from the town of Sylva and Macon Savings Bank.

According to RLC member Tom McClure, the county will receive a $21,000 payment when the Stovalls sell their Cane Creek property, and the county and the town will become primary lien holders as a result of the deal.

"(This proposal) really, in my opinion, puts us in a better position than the original proposal," county attorney Raymond Large said.

Originally the Stovalls had requested that the county release 83 of the 452-acre tract, which they planned to sell for $1,500 per acre.

Before the plan can be approved, each of the three loan grantors must agree to the terms. Town of Sylva officials, who discussed the deal at their meeting on the same night as the county, opted to study the issue further before voting.

On the recommendation of county Board of Elections Chairman Danny Barnes, commissioners approved a request to sell 10 voting machines to the Swain County Board of Elections for a total sale price of $1,000.

Board members will hold a special meeting to discuss Smart Growth Tuesday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m. The next regular meeting of the board of commissioners will be held Thursday, Oct. 19. A work session will start at 5 p.m., followed at 7 p.m. by regular business. The board has also scheduled a fall planning retreat for 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 27.

Back to Archive: 10/12/00.