MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A local company will manage the upgrades to the Monongalia County courthouse square.
March-Westin Company, Inc. was awarded the bid to begin $2,123,306.25 worth of renovations. Commission President Ed Hawkins said the changes could set the stage for more development.
“There are a lot of things going on in play in Morgantown right now. So, we actually will be a leader in what we feel will be the lower end of High Street.”
The courthouse square will be upgraded with handicapped accessible entrances. The design includes a fountain feature and staging area for events.
Mills Group designed the new plaza to include a water feature that will be back lit, include glass as a nod to Monongalia County’s history in that industry. The water represents the Monongahela River.
Lighting updates are planned. An extended porch will cover a renovated entrance.
The Monongalia County Commission and Mills Group shared the plans in November 2016. Hawkins said the designers proposed a thorough renovation project.
“The bids were so close, particularly the top two bids were so close they were within .6 percent of one another. Usually when you have that type of grouping, that means the job was excellently done by the individuals that prepared the bid package.”
The county director of facilities, Bobby Doyle, expected to meet with March Westin and other integral project contacts as soon as Wednesday afternoon following commission’s bid approval.
“We can see some cost savings we can save on changing a few items,” Doyle indicated.
Hawkins said there is hope to have the renovation complete in November.