Spencer staff seek exemption to qualifications process for $35,000 Carter House design project

Town staff asked the Board of Aldermen to approve resolution 24‑17 to exempt the Carter House adaptive reuse design project from the state’s qualifications‑based selection process so the town can select a local architect and move forward more quickly on design work.

Speaker 3 told the board the project has $20,000 from the Robertson Family Foundation and about $15,000 of town funding, producing an estimated $35,000 project budget. Speaker 3 said municipalities commonly use the exemption for design projects under $50,000 to simplify procurement and avoid the longer request‑for‑qualifications process.

Speaker 5 described discussions with Pete Bogle as a prospective architect and said Bogle’s prior experience as a county building inspector gives him relevant working knowledge for an adaptive reuse project that raises structural, ingress/egress and fire‑code considerations. Speaker 1 emphasized that the exemption is intended for professional architectural and engineering services where qualifications, not price, drive selection and that the state allows exemptions for smaller design projects, often saving months in procurement time.

Board members confirmed the $35,000 line item is budgeted (coded in the packet as a senior citizen project line), and staff said administration maintains a typical design services budget should further work be needed. The board agreed to place the resolution on the consent agenda for formal consideration at the upcoming regular meeting.

Next steps: Resolution 24‑17 will be considered on the consent agenda at the Board’s regular meeting; if approved, staff will proceed to select a designer under the exemption and return any required contract documents for authorization.