Comal County approves change orders, AV ventilation and radio coverage upgrades for emergency operations center

County project staff described two change orders to the general-contractor contract for the Public Health Emergency Operations Center (referred to in briefing as the Goodwin project) and requested authorization to buy steel dock boards for the warehouse. Staff said the project is "virtually complete" but required final work that extended the contract's critical path by 14 days and added cost.

The first change order primarily covers modification of built-in credenzas that house audio-visual hardware to add ventilation and exhaust ductwork because the equipment overheated in the originally specified cabinetry; staff said general-condition extensions and related costs total about $36,000. The second change order covers revisions to the emergency responder radio coverage (ERRC) system plus incidental items including a bronze plaque and a speak-through window frame; staff cited an originally allowed ERRC allowance of $61,000 that required revision and estimated the additional ERRC-related cost at about $26,000. The county said funding for the dock-board purchase and related items will come from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) interest-earned funds, and described the dock boards as heavy-duty ramps to safely bridge gaps between docks and trailers where embedded dock-leveling systems were not installed.

Commissioners voted to approve the change orders and the dock-board purchase. Staff said the site work is complete, a temporary certificate of occupancy from the city will allow furniture installation in December, and work to remove the old facility and finish parking will follow in January.