Lauderdale County starts dirt removal at Marion Town Hall

Lauderdale County Road Department crews are working to prepare the site for the town of Marion’s new Town Hall by removing a large dirt berm from the land ahead of building construction.

County supervisors in November agreed to assist Marion with dirt removal and site grading up to $35,000 in cost. Work was delayed while the two entities waited for an interlocal agreement to be reviewed by the state Attorney General’s office.

Road Manager Rush Mayatt said crews began removing the dirt Friday and continued Monday with approximately 10 trucks running in a continuous cycle. The dirt is being taken to the county barn to be used for future projects.

“They had a big knoll here that we cut, and of course we’re hauling the dirt to one of my barns, kind of like beneficial use. About 7,000-8,000 yards that we’ve moved,” he said. “We’re basically getting this down to what I consider a rough grade for the contractor to come in and do the site work.”

In November, Mayatt estimated around 7,000 yards of dirt needed to hauled away before work on the town hall itself could begin. That estimate is still on track, he said Monday, however the complete amount removed will depend on what needs to be done to get the site ready.

Marion’s request came after bids for the town hall construction project in October came in over budget, forcing town leaders to look at ways to reduce costs. One large factor was the dirt removal and site grading, which added several hundred thousand dollars to the overall project amount.

In December, Marion officials awarded the Town Hall project to D&E Construction for $1.6 million. Between the dirt work and several alternate options, the project came in approximately $300,000 under original costs.

Mayatt estimates county workers will be at the site for another week or so, but the sooner the county can wrap up its part of the project, the sooner the contractor can come in and begin their work.

Cutlines:

P1 – An excavator moves a bucket of dirt toward a waiting dump truck Monday morning as Lauderdale County road crews work to remove a knoll at the site of Marion’s new Town Hall

P2 – Lauderdale County Road Manager Rush Mayatt, left, and Marion Town Engineer Shaun Miles discuss site preparations for Marion’s new Town Hall on Monday while county crews work to remove truckloads of dirt from the site.