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Murray & Sons Construction, of Topeka, was the apparent low bidder on the Pottawatomie County Justice Center Tuesday afternoon.

One of 13 companies to bid on the project, Murray & Sons submitted a base bid of $10,697,700 –– significantly lower than the most recent engineer’s estimate of $12.2 million.

“I’m happy with the turnout,” said Dan Rowe of Treanor Architects, who conducted the 2 p.m. bid opening during a special meeting of the Pottawatomie County Commission.

“The bid spread gives me a little pause, but the numbers are good. There were half a dozen favorable bids in there,” Rowe said.

The architect will review the bids and return with a recommendation for the commission during its regular Monday meeting.

Base bids for the project ranged from Murray’s low of $10.7 million to a high of $13.1 million submitted by Lloyd Builders of Ottawa. All but four bidders were from Kansas, with two from Missouri, one from Nebraska, and another from Texas.

Project bids also included alternates for a geothermal heating and cooling system; installation of a sewage grinder pump; and a complete build-out of kitchen in the 63,000-square-foot justice center.

Murray & Sons submitted the following bids for the alternates: $585,000 for the geothermal system; $17,750 for the grinder pump; and $117,200 for the kitchen build-out.

The justice center, to be constructed just north of the county courthouse at Westmoreland, will consolidate all county law enforcement functions into a single building –– jail, sheriff’s office, courtrooms, county attorney and district court offices, and court-related services.

The project is to be completed in two phases. Phase I is actual construction of the new facility, and Phase II is demolition of the current jail and completion of the drive through the campus.

Commissioners hope to issue a “notice to proceed” on the project sometime in April. The bid from Murray & Sons estimates 455 calendar days to complete Phase I, and another 45 days to complete Phase II.