By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
After a grand groundbreaking in September, the site of the new Wood County Senior Center building in Bowling Green has sat idle. But that should change soon – with new bids to be submitted for the facility.
The Wood County Committee on Aging board had to go back to the drawing board in October after questions were raised about the construction bidding process for the over $7 million project.
On Wednesday, the board voted to authorize three interested contractors to submit bids. Those contractors are Rudolph-Libbe, Spieker Construction, and Mosser Construction. Mosser is the firm that was originally awarded the bid last year.
“We are facing many opportunities in the next year,” said new board president Eric Myers. “Obviously, the biggest challenge will be the construction of our new senior center.”
The new bid proposals must be submitted by Feb. 12, said Wood County Committee on Aging Executive Director Denise Niese.
“The three firms all know we want to get started as soon as possible,” Niese said after Wednesday’s meeting. Niese said she remains confident that the new senior center, at 140 S. Grove St., can be ready to open in the spring of 2021.
Though the project has lost time, the delay was over the winter when little work could have been done, she said.
“They weren’t going to be able to do a lot during the winter,” Niese said. “It would have just been moving dirt.”
The board and Niese agreed it was more important that the bidding process not be tainted by any questions about legalities.
The initial bid awarding process did not follow all the components of the public bidding process, then board president Ben Batey explained.
But after the groundbreaking in September, other contractors not awarded the job raised concerns that their bids were lower than the Mosser bid.
Batey said because the WCCOA is not a public entity that the public bidding process had not been followed exactly. But since the project was awarded $1.6 million in capital funding from the state, and is associated with Bowling Green State University, it was later realized that it fell in a “gray area” and should be rebid.
So the board voted in October to reject the bids already submitted and reissue its invitation for bids on the project in order to be fair to all bidders and be compliant with Ohio law.
Niese explained in October that the board had considered several alternatives and past projects before choosing Mosser.
“This board and this agency have always been very cognizant that we serve the public,” she said. The board is committed to a quality project that will serve seniors for decades to come, Niese said.
The existing senior center, located at 305 N. Main St., is in a building constructed in 1914 as a post office. The new building will be more than twice the size of the current senior center, with more space for programs, an adult day care area, and 82 parking spaces.
The new 35,000-square-foot senior center will be located at the site of the former school administration building between South Grove and Buttonwood streets, south of West Wooster Street.
The project got off the ground a couple years ago with $1.6 million in state funding, secured by then State Sen. Randy Gardner and then State Rep. Theresa Gavarone, both R-Bowling Green.
A $1.2 million capital campaign is underway to raise the rest of the money needed. As of Dec. 31, a total of $710,090 had been raised, Niese said.
“We’re getting there,” Niese said.
To keep senior citizens and others aware of the status of the building project, Myers said he and Niese plan to produce a monthly newsletter.
