COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – The Branch County Board of Commissioners formally approved a bid for the clearing and grubbing of trees from the site of the new Branch County Jail during their meeting Tuesday when it was also announced the formal groundbreaking will take place in a month.
Commissioners approved the low bid which totaled $72,600 from Rusty 4 Farms of Albion.
Branch County Administrator Bud Norman said they were one of two companies to submit a bid for the work after requests for proposals were sent out. The other bid of over $132,000 was submitted by Your Guys Tree Service of Fremont, Indiana.
The work will involve the removal of trees, stumps and root systems from the site.
Commission Chair Ted Gordon announced near the end of the meeting that the official groundbreaking has been scheduled for 3:00 p.m. Friday, October 25.
Branch County voters approved a 20 year millage request for up to 1.25 mills per year in August of 2018 to fund the new 184 bed jail to replace the current facility that has been used since the early 1990’s.
The old jail has had numerous maintenance issues in recent years including a pair of minor fires in the roof since last weekend. The latest took place Monday night. Coldwater firefighters were on the scene for about 40 minutes and smoke forced some inmates to be moved to another part of the jail
Before it became a jail, the building was a senior care facility. Once the new jail is built, the old facility will be torn down.
