CASPER, Wyo. — Efforts to provide a new facility to the Casper-Natrona County Health Department took another step forward on Tuesday, as the Natrona County Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved a bid from Sampson Construction to lead the project as the construction manager at risk.
As CMAR, Sampson Construction will serve as the general contractor and assist in evaluating design and cost decisions.
“They’ll be the general contractor and give suggestions on ways we can save money while not radically altering the design of the project,” owner’s rep on the project Tim Schenk said. “They’ll also be sub-contracting the things like plumbing and electrical.”
Schenk added that Sampson Construction — a Nebraska-based company with an office in Casper — has worked extensively in Natrona County, including on projects for the Natrona County School District.
Sampson’s bid included $44,000 for pre-construction services, $847,690 for construction phase services and roughly $1.64 million as a proposed general conditions not-to-exceed amount. In total, the bid amounts to $2,532,974.
The commissioners received six bids, and Sampson’s offer fell in the middle, with three bids lower and two bids higher. Despite the lower bids, Schenk recommended that commissioners approve Sampson’s offer.
“They were very strong in how they approached the project,” he said. “They have three of their main people involved in this project really in the community.”
MOA Architecture, the firm that oversaw design of the planned facility, estimated in August that it would take about 10.5 months for design work, roughly 16 months for construction, two months for post-construction and a year for a warranty period. When all is said and done, it is expected to be around March 2026 when the new building is up and running.
Correction, Dec. 20, 2023: Sampson Construction is a Nebraska-based company with an office in Casper. The information in the story has been corrected.
