Renovations of Lawton City Hall expected to begin this week

A city hall renovation project estimated at $7.577 million restores plans to build a utility payment building in the west parking lot.

Work began this week after city staff and project engineer CMS Willowbrook met to establish timelines for the work that will convert three unfinished floors in Lawton City Hall to use as city offices: the top floor of the south wing and the second and third floors of the north wing. City Engineer Joseph Painter said the project will convert 35,500 square feet of space, with work to include interior demolition, framing, plumbing and electrical work, and room finishes, as well as installation of a new HVAC system.

And, additional funding from the 2019 CIP is allowing the project manager and city to restore a project designed for residents who don’t want to park their vehicles and come inside city hall to pay their utility bills. That issue would be resolved with a stand-alone utility building, a small structure to be built in the new west parking lot as a drive-through facility where residents can pay their bill at the window without leaving their cars. While the parking lot was completed months ago, that building had been planned, then put on hold as a cost-saving measure until City Council members made the decision to designate excess funds generated in the 2019 CIP for the project. The CIP already contains $6 million for the city hall renovation, while costs for the renovation project total $7.577 million, based on subcontractor bids analyzed and recommended for implementation by CMS Willowbrook.

Those bids were formally approved earlier this spring, after the council decided to designate unallocated surplus funds generated by the CIP’s sales tax to city buildings and facilities: specifically, the city hall project and renovations at McMahon Auditorium. Construction costs for both projects are higher than originally estimated, because of surging construction and material costs, city engineers said.

There had been some discussion about omitting the lone bid the city received for installation of the HVAC system (city staff ordered the equipment late last year, because of an estimated 6-month wait for delivery). While the staff’s original recommendation was to reject the lone bid and rebid the work, Painter said city staff changed their minds when they talked to contracting firms and discovered the higher-than-expected bid was on par with what others would bid for the work.

CMS Willowbrook has identified 17 subcontractors who will be doing work ranging from framing and flooring to HVAC installation and concrete work. Project completion is expected to be 19 months. Painter said work will begin as soon as materials begin arriving on site.

Part of the reason the west parking lot was completed first was because the east parking lot, now used by city staff, will become the construction staging area when renovations begin, meaning materials will be stored there. City staff said crews will be closing that parking lot in coming weeks, along with parallel parking on Southwest B Avenue, to establish that staging area.