KTKA

When Statehouse Architect Barry Greis talks about the capitol restoration project, he gets excited.

In part, his excitement is fueled by the surprises that await he and his crew. They have uncovered hidden treasures, like the marble flooring in the west wing.

And while the surprises are always exciting for Barry, each "treasure" costs Kansas taxpayers more money to preserve.

Barry is dedicated to historical accuracy. That's his job.

But it's up to lawmakers to make sure your money is being spent as wisely as possible.

Even the lawmakers who approved the $50 million extra for this project now have concerns.

"There's been a lot of concern in the legislature and with our constituents back home that it's taking a little bit longer than anticipated, spending a little more money than what was anticipated," Senator Dwayne Umbarger said.

Even Senate President Steve Morris said he's gotten a little bit of sticker shock.

"We keep finding things that are unexpected that arise the cost of the building. Still sometimes the magnitude of those surprises is sort of a shock," Morris said.

When asked about his responsibility to pull in the reigns on the project, Umbarger said "we've got five or six different levels of oversight."

That means every expense went through five or six different levels of oversight before being approved and paid for by tax dollars.

The original estimate for a complete capitol facelift was between $90 and $120 million. That was back in 2000.

But that didn't include an underground parking garage at $15 million, extra underground office space and new visitors center.

Those additions haven't even been added to the final price tag yet -- a price tag that now sits at $172.5 million and is climbing.

"From time to time we have people say 'why don't you go out to Wal-Mart and buy some door handles?'" Morris said. "Maybe that would last for ten years but then we'd be in the same kind of situation we're in today."

But there is a difference between a quick fix from Wal Mart, and the extravagance of building parts and decorations -- case in point, the chandelier hanging from the ceiling of the House chamber.

"These shades are all lead crystal, hand cut in Czechoslovakia," said Gary Behm, with St. Louis antique Lighting.

When Morris was faced with the question "is that a little extravagant," he replied "I assume you're talking about the House chamber. I'm not totally familiar with the chandelier."

But Behm is. He said the chandelier is from a "very good company.

They're the people who make Waterford crystals, just wonderful stuff," he said. "The fixture is all solid brass, and it weighs about a thousand pounds."

Morris added "It's not because they wanted to go to Czechoslovakia to find them. it's just the only place they could find them."

The base alone weighs 400 pounds. It took seven men to carry it up two flights of stairs, and when they got it into the House chamber, they hoisted it up where it was displayed for one morning only so lawmakers could walk through and imagine what the finished product might look like.

It's a lot of work for just a morning's showing.

According to 49 News' calculations, if you take those seven men working at an estimated $14.35 an hour for one four-hour morning, it cost taxpayers $401.80, so lawmakers could get a glimpse of what's to come. Those numbers are just our estimates.

Umbarger said a few constituents have come to him with concerns.

"You're always going to find dissension and people who take exception to some of the expenditures that we make, but I think at the end of the day I think that the major majority of Kansans are going to look at the capitol building and feel that it was a wise investment," Umbarger said.

There are some law makers who have voiced concerns about the rising costs.

Kansas City Senator Chris Steineger and Emporia Representative Peggy Mast did suggest requiring an audit on the project earlier this year

Their concerns were overruled.