TRAVERSE CITY— Grand Traverse County’s Building Authority received a progress update Tuesday on Project Alpha, a multimillion-dollar construction initiative planned for the county’s LaFranier Campus.
Representatives from Cunningham-Limp, the project’s construction manager, presented architectural drawings, budget estimates, and construction timelines for two new buildings during the 9 a.m. meeting.
The project carries an estimated price tag between $26.2 million and $27.6 million based on current design development, according to county documents.
That figure now includes green energy options the Board of Commissioners approved in recent months, including geothermal systems, solar panels, rain gardens for irrigation, recycling, and a backup irrigation well.
The Emergency Operations Center/Emergency Communications Center accounts for the larger share of construction costs, estimated between $14.1 million and $14.6 million. The Central Operations Building is budgeted at $12 million to $12.6 million.
Vice President and CFO Bobby Peplinski and Director of Construction Jerry Tomczak led the presentation for Cunningham-Limp, reviewing architectural and civil drawings, a milestone construction schedule and the budget framework with authority members.
The tornado-proof structure will house all infrastructure within the building to protect emergency services from adverse weather conditions.
“This new building will now give them code-compliant operations for an emergency facility,” he said. “It’ll allow for those emergency services to be able to operate, no matter what conditions are going on outside and around them.”
The Central Operations Building will consolidate various county facilities currently scattered throughout Grand Traverse County. The Commission on Aging will have offices in the building, along with centralized storage and other departments operating from outdated facilities.
Construction on both facilities is scheduled to run concurrently, with site work beginning April 15, 2026, and building construction starting June 10, 2026. The project timeline calls for completion by April 13, 2027, with occupancy scheduled for mid-April 2027.
Cunningham-Limp will conduct a guaranteed maximum price bid process in the coming weeks, with results presented to the county in March for final approval.
Partners in Architecture is handling design development, while permitting will involve Garfield Township and Grand Traverse County agencies.
Peplinski praised the county’s cooperation throughout the design process.
“The county has been great to work with,” he said. “The Board of Commissioners have done a fantastic job in staying up to date on the project, making decisions, allowing the process to keep along the proper path to allow for construction in the most expedient fashion.”