New Corbin City Utilities offices to open next week

A $4.5 million project to construct new offices for Corbin City Utilities on Cumberland Falls Hwy. may be nearing completion after two months of delays.

CUC General Manager Ron Herd said he is hopeful employees of the utility can begin moving into the new facility next week. He said the interior of the building is basically complete, and only some small punch list items remain before the project is finished.

Construction of the 38,000 square foot facility, located on the old Falls Ford lot, has hit some small snags, including weather and some change orders by CUC. The utility’s three-member Board of Commissioners granted the general contractor on the project, Robert’s Construction, of Somerset, an additional 30 days to complete the job in October. It was supposed to be complete by mid-November, but that deadline wasn’t met either.

Herd said some late change orders were the reason for some of the delays. CUC’s contract with Robert’s provides a monetary penalty for tardiness on completion of the project. Herd said he expects the utility’s board to wave any penalties and approve another extension.

"It really isn’t costing us anything. If it was costing us extra money we would charge them but we are not really out any money," Herd said. "They’ve been real good about all the change orders. I think overall, things have gone pretty well."
When complete the facility will, for the first time, allow the utility company to have all its files and equipment on one site, and will provide customers with easier access.

CUC also has warehousing facilities at another location, and stores some trucks at yet another. Plans are to sell the current CUC offices, located on Main Street, and perhaps some other unneeded properties once construction is complete to help defray the cost.

CUC’s three-member Board of Directors voted in 2008 to purchase the 7.3-acre site for $2.35 million. Renovation of the car dealership’s main building into offices for CUC will cost around $2 million. Roberts Construction, of Somerset, is the main contractor on the project.

Herd said the board would use up to $1 million out of CUC’s nearly $4 million reserve fund to pay for construction. The rest would be borrowed. Purchase of the property was done through a participation loan involving several local banks.