Penzel picked for new Cape County Courthouse; plans unveiled

The Penzel Construction Design-Build Team will design and build the new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson, commissioners announced Friday in a special session.

The team consists of design partner TreanorHL Architects of Kansas City, Missouri, as well as local engineers and subcontractors, according to a news release from Penzel Construction.

�Our Design-Build Team worked to provide a courthouse design that is respectful of the importance of the court, while making effective and efficient use of the tax-payers� resources,� Andy Pitts, principal at TreanorHL, said in the release.

The 82,000-square-foot courthouse and underground parking facility will include six new courtrooms and will be constructed on the corner of North Missouri Street and West Washington Street, adjacent to the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff�s Department, according to the release.

Phil Penzel, CEO of Penzel Construction, said in the release, �A lot of effort went into this proposal process and it is exciting to be able move into the construction phase. I am very proud of our team and am honored to have been chosen to construct this important facility.�

This rendering shows the interior of the proposed new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson.Submitted by Penzel Construction

Foundation work is expected to begin before year-end, with a March 2020 completion, the release stated.

The Penzel/TreanorHL team and the other design-build partners, River City Construction of Benton, Illinois, and St. Louis architectural firm HOK, were selected by the commissioners in May.

As required by state law, the commissioners hired a design-build consultant, Navigate Building Solutions of St. Louis, in December. The consulting firm�s purpose is to guide the commissioners through the design and construction of the new facility, according to earlier reporting.

Prior to Friday�s special session, the two design-build teams each completed two proposals: a technical and a cost proposal.

Both sets of proposals were delivered in sealed envelopes to County Clerk Kara Clark Summers, and the technical proposals were opened and scored prior to Friday�s meeting, Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Clint Tracy said.

This rendering shows the exterior of the proposed new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson.Submitted by Penzel Construction

Tracy opened the cost proposals at the meeting, and the commissioners took a recess with the consultant to score the cost proposals.

After the technical and cost proposal scores were totaled, Penzel/TreanorHL�s score was 96 of 100, and River City/HOK�s score was 86 of 100, Tracy said.

Both firms� cost proposals without additives were $18 million, Tracy said.

For additives 1 and 2, Penzel/TreanorHL�s costs were $225,000 and $229,000, respectively.

River City/HOK�s costs were $117,000 and $54,000, respectively.

This rendering shows the interior of the proposed new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson.Submitted by Penzel Construction

Tracy did not elaborate on the contents of the two additives.

There is a protest period of seven business days, Tracy said, but commissioners voted to award the project to Penzel/TreanorHL to begin contract negotiations.

Tracy, Commissioner Charlie Herbst and Commissioner Paul Koeper each thanked both teams for their work in a long process.

After the meeting, Herbst said he thought the bidding process came out well.

�It�s absolutely a great value for the citizens,� Herbst said, adding, �We asked for $18 million of scope, and we�re going to get $18 million in scope.�

The site of the planned new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse building is seen July 16 in Jackson.KASSI JACKSON

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