Penobscot County commissioners voted Oct. 1 to award the Franklin Street renovation contract to Benchmark Production of Westbrook for $470,234, with funding to come from designated ARPA allocations, jail renovation ARPA funds and the county buildings account.

The county facilities director presented the two lowest bids and recommended Benchmark after checking references and receiving positive feedback from prior project contacts, including work on Bangor City Hall.

Commissioners discussed funding. The facilities director and county administrator told the commission there was a shortfall relative to funds already allocated for the project; the recommended plan was to use an allotment from the county’s ARPA jail renovation funds and draw the remaining balance from the county buildings escrow account.

“Is it the recommendation, administrator, to go with Benchmark?” the chair asked. The administrator confirmed the recommendation.

A motion to award the contract to Benchmark Production, Westbrook, Maine, for $470,234 passed unanimously.

Commissioners said they will request regular updates from the administrator and finance director to track the running tally of project balances and projections across all active county projects. The facilities director said some items had been removed from scope so the county could perform parts of the work in‑house, and that additional minor savings would be sought when negotiating the contract and reviewing the project details.

Why this matters: The Franklin Street renovation will house the sheriff’s civil and patrol offices and create space to support programs absorbed by the county, including a pretrial program, county leaders said. The project uses one‑time federal ARPA funds and existing county capital funds; commissioners flagged the need to maintain a consolidated spending projection as several renovation projects move forward simultaneously.

The commission did not approve a revised construction contingency schedule at the meeting; staff were directed to return with updates on any additional funding needs and change orders as project planning proceeds.