Commissioners accept bid for Banner visitor's center construction

Construction of a visitor’s center at Banner Creek Reservoir is moving forward after the Jackson County Commissioners approved a bid from Aeschliman Construction of Holton during their meeting on Monday.

Two bids for the project, which includes the construction of a 48-foot by 72-foot building, were received and opened by Kurt Zibell, Banner Creek Reservoir director, during the commission meeting. Several members of Friends of Banner Creek Reservoir, who have spearheaded the project, were also present.

The center will include a 2,000-square foot event room, a large kitchen, men’s and women’s bathrooms, a storage room and a covered porch.

The commissioners approved the $379,636 base bid for the project from Aeschliman Construction. The board also approved two alternates for the project - $10,500 for an ADA compliant concrete parking lot pad and $3,500 for a sidewalk for a total of $393,636.

The commissioners are also interested in another alternate in the bid, which includes using Ground Source Heating & Cooling at an additional $5,761 due to a possible rebate. The commissioners tabled the issue until they could gather more information.

The other bid received was $492,261.79 from JM Custom Builders of Clifton. 

During the bid process, Mark and Dylan Aeschliman reached out to area subcontractors who agreed to donate a total of $18,960 in material or labor for the community project, which was reflected in their submitted bid.

Those who have agreed to donate materials or labor include Aeschliman Construction, Chris Gross Construction, Bell Plumbing, Riley Electric, McManigal Electric, Andy Gilliland with Topeka Landscape, Haug Construction and Ehrhart Excavating. 

Members of Friends of Banner Creek Reservoir have raised funds for the construction of the visitor’s center for several years.

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