HANCOCK COUNTY — After listening to the top two proposals chosen for the Amplify Hancock project, commissioners took two weeks to discuss and decide their final choice, which was announced at Tuesday’s joint commissioner and council meeting.
After multiple proposals, the top two chosen — Zurbuch Consulting and the Veridus Group — spoke on why they believed they should be the consulting firm to work with the Amplify Hancock project.
“The decision on the choice of a consulting group is a difficult one for us to make, but the proposals that were submitted by Veridus and Zurbuch and the presentations helped us choose who we believe would be the better qualifier to represent Hancock County,” Spalding said.
The first to present to the commissioners of the two at the Jan. 16 meeting was Mary Zurbuch, owner of Zurbuch Consulting. Zurbuch said that while they had no elaborate presentation for the meeting, she believed that their proposal spoke for itself.
Zurbuch established the firm in 2003 and has had services all over central Indiana. Zurbuch said that primarily their work includes municipality work. While Zurbuch said the firm is rather small, she said the reasoning behind that is because work is done on a relationship basis and they pick projects where they believe they can add the most amount of value.
The other top chosen group was the Veridus Group, an Indianapolis-based firm started in 2011 by Tim Jensen. Veridus Group has worked with cities throughout the state and Midwest. Lawernceburg’s event center and hotel was their first project back in 2011.
At the Jan. 30 joint commissioner and council meeting, Spalding said that, although it was a difficult choice to make, the commissioners chose to go with the Veridus Group.
When looking at both groups, Spalding said they put in place a set of criteria, something they have not done before, and reviewed the procedures.
Spalding also said with the project’s details and roles defined and discussed, the commissioners were able to make their decision.
As far as next steps to keep the process moving along, Spalding said that a construction manager and constructor will need to be chosen.
Amplify Hancock will be an approximately 90,000- to 100,000-square-foot building near the corner of 300N and 200W, with room for possible expansion — a total of 40 acres according to graphics shown.
The center will serve as a common area for multi-use learning and innovation, ranging from adults learning skills for the workforce to high school students from all four school districts a place to seek vocational education or CTE education.
Funding so far has come from multiple sources and donations, including $40 million from county commissioners and $1.4 million from the READI funds. The target budget for this project is between $42-44 million.
Amplify Hancock to be completed and ready to hold students in the fall of 2026.
