The Winnebago County Conservation Board, and Martin Gardner Architects, have once again begun the bid letting process for the new Winnebago County Environmental Education Center! The plans and specs have been released and are now available for contractors to review. Winnebago county Conservation Board Director Robert Schwartz stated that bid letting will begin soon.
Although they had received a few donations earlier, the WCCB began fundraising in earnest for the Environmental Education Center in June of 2018. Having reached their fundraising goal by the end of 2020, they first accepted bids in January of 2021. Unfortunately, because of Covid-related increases in building costs, the bids came in about 30% higher than what was anticipated. As a result, the WCCB had to reject all of the bids. Since then, though, they have made some building modifications and raised some additional money. So, it is hoped that these latest bids will now be more in line with the finances that the WCCB has available.
Schwartz reaffirmed that there may be more donations needed to complete the project.
If anyone would like more information about the new Environmental Education Center, or the bid letting process, they can contact the Winnebago County Conservation Board at 641-565-3390, or WCCB Director Robert Schwartz at [email protected].
