County receives Gidding certificate of occupancy

Staff Writer

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Curry County personnel stand a step closer to moving into their newly renovated administrative digs at 417 Gidding Street.

“We have received the certificate of occupancy for 417 Gidding,” County Manager Lance Pyle said. “SDV Construction is currently working on the punch list. We did a walk through and found some items that needed to be addressed, so they’re working on that and will have until July 19 to complete them.”

Officials originally targeted a completion date of April for the $4 million, 18,000-square-foot initiative, but now a timetable of late July to early August has been established.

“We’re also starting to plan the move to 417 Gidding and trying to facilitate all of the elected department’s schedules, as well as that of others,” Pyle said. “We have furniture that has been ordered that’s going to be coming in and we also have our computer infrastructure that we have to move from the courthouse.”

In June county officials were working to address building monitoring issues that they said were slowing the process of garnering clearances from the state fire marshal and local building inspectors — but those matters have now been addressed.

“I think you’ve got a very attractive building, a very functional building that I’m certainly proud of and the county commission and taxpayers can be proud of,” SDV Construction Project Manager Jerry Morgan said. Multiple change orders and changes in the original plan have challenged workers.

Morgan said weather has also been a factor in delays. Other problems he said, “have been unforeseen by everybody because of the way the building was originally constructed.” Floors, for example, are considerably thicker than architectural plans had indicated they would be, Morgan said.