Progress - Public Growth

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Minot builds infrastructure to handle growth, Page 4.

The place to be: South Minotʼs growth continues, Page 9.

New terminal to bring back hassle-free flying, Page 11.

Minot Daily News

SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2015

Public Growth

Jill Schramm/MDN

Construction progresses on the Ward County office building on Third Street Southeast March 12.

Look future to the

Construction to bring changes to county offices By JILL SCHRAMM

Staff Writer jschramm @minotdailynews.com A county office building under construction signals changes coming soon for W a r d C o u n t y employees and the public W a r d County vote r s approved Larson bonding in 2012 that enabled construction to begin. The office building was 65 percent complete as of early March. Because of complications with soil conditions and utility work, the completion date was pushed back from September to November, project architect Don Davison with JLG Architects in Minot said. Once the building is ready for move in, it will take time to transition offices from the courthouse into the new building. Davison said the hope is to move the technology department early because it could take more than a month to set up the computer network in the new building. The office building will offer a much different environment than the courthouse, built in the 1930s. “We tried to bring a lot of natural daylight into the space. That’s one thing that they don’t have now,” Davison said. “We are giving them a more efficient operation with probably a few more square feet.”

Don Davison, with JLG Architects in Minot, displays the various drafts and designs for Ward Countyʼs jail expansion, office building and Courthouse renovation March 12. Jill Schramm/MDN

The 75,000-square-foot office building compares to 63,000 square feet in the courthouse, but the efficiency of the space will be the biggest advantage in the new building, he said. The building will be served by fiber optic connection with improved computer network and technology capabilities and a more efficient heating and cooling system. Like the courthouse, the building’s main entry will be on the west side, although there also will be an eastside entry off a parking lot. An open stairway will lead from the main lobby, and an elevator also will service that

area. The north side of the main floor will house the Ward County Library, which Davison estimated will be 25 to 30 percent larger than the existing library, located in a small building near the courthouse. The new library will include a board room and workroom. At present, no decision has been made regarding where the bookmobile will be housed. The Veterans Service Office also will be located in the north section of the main floor. A multi-purpose meeting room with removable

dividers for smaller gatherings will take a large share of the main floor’s south side. The room will be set up with communications equipment to serve as the emergency operations center during disasters. At other times, it will be open for public use and will be available to Emergency Management and the Ward County Extension Office, both located in that section of the building. “We are providing more common spaces rather than spaces for every department,” Davison said. Common spaces can serve to bring employees together

rather than cluster them in departments, he said. The second floor will have the skyway connecting the courthouse to the second floor of the south section of the office building, where the public will find the auditor/treasurer’s office, superintendent of schools, human resources and commission chambers. The north side of the second floor will house the county recorder, tax equalization office and a lounge/meeting room with kitchenette. The third floor of the office building will house Ward County Social Services. The lobby or pub-

lic entrance will be on the north side. A meeting/lounge area with kitchenette on the north side has been downsized due to a recent determination that more office space is needed. The south side of the third floor will have offices, four visitation rooms with outside viewing rooms used during certain child visitations in divorce situations or for some interview purposes. Eligibility workers with Ward County Social Services will be located on a north-side fourth floor, along with meeting space and a conference room. The south side will not have a fourth floor. Davison said an aesthetic decision was made to avoid having the office building taller than the courthouse. The north side of the building sits at a lower level and can accommodate a fourth floor without achieving the courthouse’s height. However, building the fourth floor at this time eliminates the expansion option that was included in the original design for three stories. Davison said the fourth floor added about $1 million to the cost, increasing the construction expense to $16.3 million. With contingencies, engineering, architect fees and other “soft” costs, the total cost is around $19 million. Davison said the building cost came in under budget during bidding. The cost did rise some afterwards, though, because of building alternatives commissioners elected to add. A portion of the building that is not likely to get much visitor traffic is the basement. Only the north side of the office building will have a basement. See COUNTY — Page 3


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