SIDNEY — None of the four bids received for construction for a new grandstand at the Shelby County Fairgrounds were accepted Tuesday by the Shelby County Commissioners.
Commissioner Julie Ehemann said Thursday morning, the commissioners met with Shelby County Agricultural Society President Mitch Brautigam and Secretary Jerry Schaffner and to review the bids Tuesday.
“We came to the conclusion together,” said Ehemann, of the commissioners decision to not accept any of the bids.
The four bids for the project were opened on Dec. 22. Sturdi Steel Co., of East Lansing, Michigan, submitted a bid of $749,000. The bid by Outdoor Aluminum Inc. was for $534,000. E and D Specialty Stands Inc., of North Collins, New York, bid $649,840. The last bid opened was by GT Grandstands Inc., of Plant City, Florida. It was for $524,760.
Shelby County Engineer Bob Geuy had estimated the cost of the 1,480-seat, roofed grandstand would be $530,000. The estimate does not include lighting the grandstand or track. Ohio law states only bids within 10 percent of the estimated can be accepted.
Ehemann said the bids were higher than the fairboard had anticipated and that they don’t have enough funding for the project as it was bid.
“We will be rebidding the project with some changes to try to get it a bit lower,” said Ehemann. The project will be rebid within the next week or so once all the paperwork is completed.
Ehemann said two portions of the project have been modified with the hopes of bringing the cost of the project down.
“The decking (on the original bid) called for a welded deck,” said Ehemann. “We’re now going with an interlocking deck with is less expensive.”
The second change, she said, deals with the depth of the area between the seats.
“It was going to be extra wide,” said Ehemann. “Now it’s not going to be extra wide.”
Ehemann said they are hoping to keep the same number of seats which was first proposed.
The former grandstand was demolished in March because it did not meet insurance regulations. Bleachers were rented for the use during the 2016 fair.
Schaffner had previously reported that $246,000 in grants, $175,000 in pledges and $69,000 in cash donations have been raised for the project. Fundraising for the new grandstand continues and donors can contribute to the project by contacting the Community Foundation of Shelby County at 937-497-7800.
