Miami County Commissioners approve $6.2M construction contract by 2-1 vote for One Stop Center

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By Haylee Pence

[email protected]

TROY – On Tuesday, June 21, the Miami County Commissioners met to authorize five resolutions, including a resolution involving signing a contract with Arcon Builders, Ltd. for the Miami County One Stop Center Project, which resulted in a 2-1 vote to approve the contract.

Commissioner Vice President Wade Westfall voted no on the resolution, citing various reasons and concerns, including the current costs associated with purchasing materials and construction costs.

“At this time with the severe downturn in the economy with raising inflation, the likes we have not seen in four decades, material and supply chain issues, and trending revenue decline, I believe it would make more sense and would be prudent for us to table this matter until we can complete the facilities analysis. […] If this commission completes our facilities analysis and has determined that this is the top priority for our county, I will whole-heartedly support the project,” stated Westfall.

Commissioner President Ted Mercer and Commissioner Gregory Simmons both voted yes to this resolution, stating that the One Stop Center will greatly increase the functionality and support of the county departments.

“It’s about the citizens of Miami County. I’ve hardly talked to anyone who’s went out to Experiment Farm Road on a Saturday that didn’t complain. […] As far as costing us money, it’ll cost us money in the beginning, but once the bond is paid off, we’ll be making money for a long period of time afterwards,” commented Simmons.

“We’ve been working on this project for a number of years,” said Mercer. He then read a statement from a letter received from the Ohio Department of Public Safety concerning the project, which read, “The Department of Public Safety looks forward to working with the Miami County Board of Commissioners to serve the residents of Miami County.” Mercer continued on how the One Stop Center will be able to better serve the citizens by detailing which departments will be located there and the advantages of the building.

The One Stop Center will be built on the land at Barnhart Road and State Route 55 in Troy. The building will likely hold the Department of Development, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, the Title Office, the Regional Building Regulations Department, and Plumbing Services. There will also be room for the driver’s exam station. The building will also feature updated technology to limit contact with individuals in lieu of the pandemic and for efficiency. The cost of the contract with Arcon Builders, Ltd. is $6,270,000.

In other news:

Also on Tuesday, another resolution approved was to authorize the purchase of a Ricoh MP CW2201SP scanner/printer for the Miami County Recorder’s Office. The machine will be used to digitize large index/plat books and deed and mortgage documents starting in 1807 to the present. With these documents being digitized, the records will be available remotely online. The cost of the printer/scanner is $7,839 and will be utilizing ARPA funds.

The commissioners also authorized the employment verification for a full-time animal control officer for a pay rate of $16/hour.

Then, they authorized the resignation of an eligibility referral specialist for the Department of Job and Family Services.

The final resolution was to appoint Seth Angle to the Miami County Rural Zoning Commission.

“We’re always looking for community volunteers to serve on our commission boards. If you’re interested, please reach out to our Department of Development,” commented Mercer.

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