Decatur County Commissioners plan to turn to a local contractor to help repair a leaky roof at the county jail.

At their Tuesday meeting, commissioners approved a low bid of $12,271.60 from Cottles Roofing of Bainbridge for work on the roof.

Most of the leaking is occurring around skylights and flashings on the jail roof, which was opened in 1993, said County Jail Administrator Major Linn Harrell.

Harrell said he had solicited bids from three contractors, including Cottles and two others from Tallahassee, Fla. One contractor, Rowe Roofing of Tallahassee chose not to bid; Harrell Roofing Inc. of Tallahassee submitted a bid of $29,731.12.

Harrell said the contractors were in agreement that the skylights needed to be replaced. According to Harrell, Rowe’s representative said the overall roof was in good shape and could last another five to six years if the present leak could be fixed.

Board of Commissioners Chairman Earl Perry said there was some concern about the range in prices and said he was not sure whether the two bids were equivalent in the scope of work they proposed.

County Administrator Tom Patton said it is not unusual for bids from contractors in larger cities to be higher than those from local contractors.

Nonetheless, County Commissioner Palmer Rich said he would like to see the repair work be covered by a contract containing a guarantee for the work to be performed.

County Attorney Brown Moseley said he believed a guarantee or warranty should have been addressed in a Request for Proposals but agreed to meet with Cottles and Rich to work out a guarantee after the bid’s approval.

Harrell explained that his request for bids was done verbally because of the need to get the repairs started as quickly as possible due to the severity of the leakage.