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Library board gets look at project
Brian Irwin, director of properties for Cerner Corp., told the Nevada Library Board during its meeting Thursday, when he first visited Nevada to look at potential sites for Cerner's Innovation Center, City Manager JD Kehrman spent the day showing him around town and looking at four possible spaces.
None of the first three would work, Irwin said. One was too small for Cerner's needs, another was too far away from the downtown area and the third -- the old Oddfellow building at the northeast corner of Ash and Cherry streets -- has an OK location and the space was adequate, but he said it would need a lot of work to make it useable.
Then Kehrman brought them to the top floor of the library.
Irwin said his thought when he walked in the door was, "Why didn't we come here first?"
"(Kehrman) must have been using an old marketing trick of saving the best for last," Irwin told the Library Board members. "It's the perfect spot."
Shawn Frost, construction manager for the project, told the board construction will complete in late May and the furniture and desks are scheduled for delivery May 22. The plan is for everything to be installed before Memorial Day weekend.
The plan is to open for business June 3, after allowing a "week or so" to work out any bugs.
Frost pointed out that the opening could be delayed.
Library board members were taken on tour of the upper floor and were generally pleased with what they saw.
"I'm really glad it's happening" said library board member Jim Erpenbach. "I think it's going to be great."
Irwin told the board when Cerner first started the program more than 18 months ago, the idea was to start these centers in five different communities around Missouri. As it turned out Nevada offered the mix for which Cerner was looking -- small colleges, industry, a central location, an active central business core and a helpful city government.
The project, which is now 70 percent complete, has used as many local trades as possible in the construction.
He said that 53 percent to 55 percent of the total work has been performed by local companies and everyone had a chance to bid on the project.
"I've been impressed with some of the trades hired here," Frost said, adding that Ernsbarger Heating and Air Conditioning and Bill's Electric, will be convenient for maintenance after the center is open.
Irwin told the board that the Innovation Center will have it's own gas and electric meters as well as fiber connection so the center will be paying for those.
In response to a question from the board, Irwin said that the center's meeting facility will be available for use by the community.
The project, dubbed the "Healthy Nevada Innova-tion Center," will focus on creating a culture of health in the community through education, incentives, infrastructure and partnerships with stakeholders such as the Nevada school district, local employers and community organizations like the Nevada Housing Authority, according to information on the Cerner website.
In addition, the Healthy Nevada project aims to decrease 10 percent of the current health care spend in Vernon County by decreasing the demand for services by placing an emphasis on health, wellness and prevention.
Cerner is investing $745,000 in renovating the 6,100-square-foot floor. Once the Healthy Nevada Project is over, the library board will address its future use.
In other business the board:
* Approved changing the library's phone system from the city's to AT&T. The change in telephone will mean the library will have to pay $90 per month for three lines as well as for long distance calls, which they do not do presently. The library currently pays $92 per month.
* Approved hiring Hoot Mann, Manneco Inc., to replace the Christmas lights on the library building with LED lights at a total cost of $858.8
* Approved placing speed bumps on the drive-through in front of the library entrance.