By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
Only one bid was received by Decatur’s board of works and safety at its recent meeting for renovation of the Faurote Building downtown.
The bidding company, however, was Limberlost Construction of Geneva, which is quite familiar with the deteriorated structure on Second St. since it secured the then-unsafe building well over a year ago.
Limberlost offered a bid of $504,721 to renovate the entire structure. For an additional $46,277, it would separate the smaller part of the building in the rear from the main portion.
The building, once done, will become the office of the Adams County Economic Development Corp. (ACEDC).
ACEDC Executive Director Colton Bickel attended the meeting and, when asked if there was an engineer’s estimate of the project’s cost, replied that it was $523,000 … but that was done in March of 2023. “So it’s been awhile,” he added.
It was decided to have Bickel take the bid under advisement for a detailed check before reporting back to the board at its Sept. 17 meeting.
The city owns the building and has signed a lease agreement with the ACEDC, which will eventually own the two-story structure and lease the small portion in the rear to the city, which plans to use it for much-needed storage.
The city obtained a state READI grant of $290,000 to put toward renovation of the building and the ACEDC, through its own funds and some private donations, will add pick up the tab for the rest of the cost.
After the city took possession of the dilapidated building from city resident Paul Faurote in early 2022, it hired Limberlost Construction, at a cost of $153,350, to secure the then-unsafe structure.
The ACEDC office is currently located in the Adams County Service Complex at Third and Jefferson streets.
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