James City County’s Human Services Center will receive its first major renovation since the building was constructed in the mid-1980s.
The JCC Board of Supervisors approved a $1,199,750 contract for Ashland-based Haley Builders to renovate the center, located at 5249 Olde Towne Road, during its meeting Tuesday night.
The partial renovation will include a complete roof replacement, electrical panel upgrades, improved lighting and the renovation of finishes, doors and furnishings in the central portion of the building, which functions as the waiting area, according to a staff memo.
There will also be improvements to public restrooms so they are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Barry Moses, the county’s capital projects coordinator, said he anticipates construction will start next month and could wrap up as early as December. He said completing the project in phases will allow business to continue as usual at the center, but will also result in the projected 10- to 12-month construction period.
Customers could be affected the most during construction, but also benefit the most when renovations are complete.
For example, while the waiting area is renovated, customers may be “rerouted” to the auditorium to wait, Moses said.
Improvements will take place in the auditorium before waiting area, so by the time customers need to be directed to the auditorium, they will see improvements such as new lighting and a flexible layout to accommodate more meetings, Moses said.
He added that improvements to storefront windows at the entrance to the waiting area will reduce the inflow of cold or hot air to the central area of the building.
The renovations were budgeted for about $2.1 million in the fiscal 2016 Capital Improvement Plan. Moses said although the contract is for $1.2 million, other renovations like the HVAC replacement, lighting improvements and crawl space renovations are covered by the CIP budget.
