Commissioners Approve Contract Negotiations for Courthouse Roof Project

Another Centre County courthouse project is in the works.

During the March 28 Centre County Board of Commissioners meeting, county brass heard from Centre County Director of Facilities Management Lee Sheaffer, who talked about bid results for a roof restoration project for the courthouse.

“We’re talking about the rear portion of the 1963 addition of the courthouse. This is the flat rubber portion in the rear,” Sheaffer explained. “This is a restoration project. Not a complete tear-off and replacement.”

Sheaffer said the county has received three bids — from R.H. Marcon Inc. in State College, from David M. Maines Associates in Lewistown and from Detwiler Roofing in East End.

“We received three complete proposals back,” Sheaffer said.

Sheaffer asked the BOC for permission to enter into contract negotiations to “keep the project moving along.”

While Sheaffer didn’t make any recommendations, he did point out that a pair of bids came from familiar faces.

“Marcon and Maines, we’re very familiar with,” Sheaffer said.

One of the concerns, of course, is that the roof will stand the test of time — and black vultures. Black vultures destroyed the Willowbank Building’s roof, tearing up the black coating as if it were licorice. Commissioner Steve Dershem voiced some concerns about the vultures returning.

“We have to ask the obvious question: It’s spring and the birds have migrated back north. How are we doing up there with mediation of the vulture problem?” Dershem asked.

Sheaffer calmed those fears.

“No issues,” he said. “I haven’t seen any on the roof. We’ve had no issues with damage or anything of that nature.”

The new roof installed last year is white, which is helping prevent the vultures from returning.

“I’ve been out on the roof … on a partial sunny day. When you step off the roof into the penthouse, you sort of take a minute to adjust your eyes. It’s white … it’s doing its job right now,” Sheaffer said.

Chair Mark Higgins said vultures are a concern.

“Who would have thought we’d be so concerned about migratory black vultures? But we are,” Higgins said.

The commissioners unanimously approved entering into contract negotiations.

The roof project is the latest in a series of upkeep work for the courthouse. In recent years, the interior of the courthouse has undergone numerous renovations, from paint to sprinkler systems and everything in between. This year, in addition to the roof work, the county is also looking to replace the deteriorating retaining walls around the exterior of the courthouse

The BOC will meet again at 10 a.m. on April 4. The meeting is open to the public and will be televised live by C-NET.