Holmes County set to award courthouse window contract after lower bid ruled nonconforming

The search for new windows in the remaining 81 windows of the Holmes County Courthouse continued Monday, Nov. 24 when the Holmes County Commissioners held a bid opening for the services of window replacement.

The county received two bids that were relatively even financially, with one caveat: The bid from Gunton Corp. of Bedford Heights presented a bid of $575,000 using Pella windows while P&L Builders of Charm offered a bid of $605,000 with the use of Anderson windows.

The bids were opened by Holmes County assistant engineer Josh Galbraith, who will now take them back and study each proposal, making sure they both fit the necessary qualifications.

According to Galbraith, the county has the choice of choosing the bid that is either least expensive, best or both.

The difference in the window brands comes into play because earlier this year P&L won a bid replacing other windows in the courthouse with specially made Anderson windows.

“We did a few of the windows earlier, but this is the main replacement,” said Commissioner Joe Miller, who said the commissioners will want to get together with the engineer’s office to discuss the county’s options.

The timeline for the window replacement project is broken down into three phases. Phase one would be the first floor being completed by June 1, 2026; the second floor would be done by Nov. 1, 2026; and the third floor would be completed by June 1, 2027.

The commissioners expressed their gratitude and appreciation for both bidders for coming in at or near the county engineer’s estimate of $600,000.

On Monday, Dec. 1, Galbraith reconvened with the commissioners, expressing his thoughts on which company should receive the bid award.

According to Galbraith, the Gunton Corp. bid was excused because it didn’t conform to the specifics of the submitted request, which specifically stated the county wanted to use Anderson windows to match the windows already put in place earlier this year.

“The bid specified Anderson windows,” Galbraith said. “Therefore, I recommend accepting the P&L bid as our recommendation.”

“It is a different product than what we had asked for,” Commissioner Dave Hall said.

Galbraith will submit an official letter of recommendation to the commissioners, and the bid to utilize P&L Builders will be made official during the Monday, Dec. 8 meeting of the board of commissioners.