Sunbelt Builders approved to construct CFD’s new ‘Station 23’

COVINGTON, Ga. – The newest fire station set to serve Covington is officially on its way after a bid for construction was approved by city council at their latest meeting. 

The contract to construct the CFD’s “Station 23” was awarded to Sunbelt Builders with unanimous council approval on June 16. 

CFD Chief Joe Doss told the council that a dozen groups submitted proposals in response to the city’s Request for Quote (RFQ). Of the 12 submissions, Doss said that he, the operations chief and one of the battalion chiefs worked to narrow down the applicants before deciding on Sunbelt.

Doss explained that the trio sat down and first cut out six applicants. Then, he and the operations chief went on what Doss called “field trips” to see finished projects done by the remaining applicants. That allowed them to eliminate a few more applicants, leaving just three to pick from.

“We sat down, we did the score sheet on [the last three]; at the end of the score sheet, they all scored the same,” Doss said. “One of them would have scored better in one example than the others, and it just went down the line like that.”

Sunbelt has long been a preferred choice for many entities in Newton County. Just three months ago, the city approved an RFQ for the local company to construct the Covington-Newton County E911 center for over $5.6 million. The company is also the primary builder for the new Newton County Senior Services Enrichment Center.

According to a portfolio from their website, Sunbelt has also constructed several standing buildings within the county. Those include the Newton Medical Center, Nitro 2 Go, Newton Baptist Church, the Newton County Maintenance Facility, Newton County Fire Station No. 7 and the Oxford College admissions office.

Doss said that, with the final three contractors appearing so evenly matched, the ultimate decision to go with Sunbelt came down to the company’s proven track record as well as some other key points/

“It came down to using local contractors,” Doss said. “It came down to the city has already used this company multiple times. They’re currently using the company. And if they’ve been vetted in other departments and they came out on top there, why not now?”

Though the item was listed on the city’s agenda as a discussion topic, city staff determined that the council did need to vote to approve the contract with Sunbelt.

In a motion made by Councilwoman Susie Keck, the council unanimously approved the request.

What is Station 23?

In March, the council approved concept plans for the new southside station on Jackson Highway SW. The design aims to create a more comprehensive public safety center than a typical fire station.

The station will be located on Jackson Highway SW and will feature a large multi-level facility.

The upstairs building space will be allotted to EMS and police services, an addition that is not part of the typical fire station design. But this offers a twofold benefit.

For one, having a multi-level plan allows the developers to work with the existing hilly topography rather than paying to level the ground. Plus, having the space for EMS and police gives them a new outpost in the southside area.

“Whatever officer is assigned to this zone, say they get in a chase, something happens, they just need to get out of their car to eat lunch, they can go here and they’re still in their zone,” Doss said in March.

According to Doss’s March presentation, the station would have one engine onsite. Along with the engine garage and accompanying two-story, multi-function building, the site will have a supply house for miscellaneous CFD equipment.

As of March, the chief was considering staffing the site with one captain, one engineer, one relief driver and one firefighter per shift, with three shifts working. At that time, he had already hired three new employees and needed another nine to hit his goal of a dozen personnel. There was no personnel update offered at the June meeting.

An estimated completion date for the project is not readily available at this time.