Hemphill County Underground Water Conservation District board members formalized a contract with the Amarillo’s Parkhill Smith & Cooper on Tuesday, to provide conceptual plans and probable costs for construction of new offices. The decision followed last month’s agreement to purchase a building site located near the Exhibition Center from Hemphill County.

Both decisions were the result of several months spent discussing and negotiating with Barbara Knight for purchase of the district’s current offices. When those negotiations faltered, a real estate committee was appointed to conduct a survey of already-existing commercial properties that are on the market here. Two months ago, Hemphill County commissioners accepted the district’s proposal for purchase of a small tract of land on Exhibition Road.

PSC architect Paul Hare met with the board this week to explain a multiphase proposal to assist the water district in the planning and construction process. The initial phase involves only the conceptual planning of the building—which includes a floor plan and site plan—and an Opinion of Probable Cost (OPC), which Hare said would provide an estimate of both the time required for construction and the maximum costs, allowing the board to decide whether to move forward or not.

The board unanimously approved a contract with PSC for those services, at a cost not to exceed $12,000.

Beyond that, Hare said his firm can help the district with more detailed design development, schematic design, preparation of bid documents, coordination of the bid process, and administration of the construction phase itself. If the district decides to proceed when the first phase is completed, a separate contract will be required to approve the firm’s ongoing involvement.

“We don’t put a nail in the wall,” said Hare, who explained that PSC would oversee construction, administer the contract, perform testing, provide engineering services, and oversee final punch lists.

Hare said the probable timeline, from the initial design work to the first shovel in the ground, would be about seven months. Construction could require an additional six to eight months, depending on the type of construction chosen.

In response to the board’s questions, Hare gave his assurance that final costs would not exceed his firm’s estimates.

“This contract is pretty simple,” Hare said. “We just want to help you out. If we continue, then we can negotiate another fee, another contract.”

Before voting on the contract, board member Elizabeth Light asked, “Is everybody 100 percent on moving forward with a new building? Or is anyone interested in the prospect of [purchasing an existing] building in town that is centrally located and may be a better option?”

“I feel like we’ve already gone through that,” said fellow director Spencer Hanes, who served on the real estate committee that explored other options.

“I’m hearing rumors that this could cost up to $400,000,” Light said.

“That’s what this phase is for,” said general manager Janet Guthrie.

“I defer to the committee,” said director Beth Sturgeon. “You’ve done the homework and run the traps on all opportunities. We’ve made a land purchase.”

“We’re to the point of building,” said Marty Carr, who chaired the meeting in Jim Haley’s absence. “We need a home, and I think this is the route we’ve all chosen. We need to get the ball rolling.”

“Do you have any concerns we need to talk about before we act on this?” Carr asked Guthrie, who responded, “No. I think we need to do this phase. We need to know.”

Hanes’ motion to contract with PSC for development of the conceptual plan and opinion of probable costs was approved in a 3-0 vote.