Due to unexpected increased costs, floodgates may not be built around the Schoharie County office complex as hoped.
Bill Cherry, the county's flood recovery coordinator, told supervisors Friday morning that bids have come back for the floodgate project and the news is not good.
The lowest bid for the floodgate project was $3.937 million and when the design and construction management expenses are added in, the total cost is about $4.7 million, according to Mr. Cherry. FEMA has allocated only $3.9 million for the project.
Officials are closely looking at the project and will try to pare down costs but it is unlikely that they will find nearly $800,000 to trim, he added.
"Despite the best efforts of our engineering and construction management team to reduce or trim the project in order to make it less expensive, we have not yet found a way to bring it in for the amount approved by FEMA," Mr. Cherry told supervisors. "$800 (thousand) is a huge number."
In addition, there is also little hope that FEMA will increase the funding for the project, Mr. Cherry continued.
A request has been made, but "there is not a lot of optimism that FEMA will agree to this change, but we will do our best.
"Now that we know the actual construction costs, the board should be aware that there now exists a very real possibility that the floodgate project will not happen after all."
Under FEMA mandates, the county cannot "kick in" to the project and if the work cannot be done for what FEMA would pay, they will not fund the project. The county cannot use the funds for another purpose, Mr. Cherry noted.
FEMA agreed to build floodgates that would rise to the 100-year flood level plus two feet, according to Mr. Cherry. This would protect the county offices from about two feet of water on Main Street but not five feet.
The increased costs for the project are due to the flood protection needed underground to prevent flood water from seeping into the county offices, Mr. Cherry said. A water curtain needs to be placed 32-feet below the surface.
The redesign of the courtyard in front of the county building was also to be part of the project.
The county has until March 13 to act on the bids from the seven firms. The highest bid was for more than $4.4 million. The lowest, $3.937 million.
Any costs already incurred by the county due to the project will be covered by FEMA.
The county has already benefited from about $1.5 million in flood protection upgrades from FEMA, Mr. Cherry noted.
The funding has paid to move the county's boilers and generators to higher ground and to strengthen walls and install floodproof glass in several county offices.