You may have to search a bit for the right contractor or engineer - sometimes I see one solution dominating in an area - "that is how we always do it" 

Definitely get the structural engineer to look at the joists & support beams to see what's up with the uneven floors.

My hunch is that's $85K for the garage itself before plans, permits, engineering, sewer line, electrical panel, etc. 

These methods include: Detailed Engineering Cost ApproachDetailed Engineering Cost Estimate ApproachSurvey or Letter ApproachResidual Estimation ApproachSampling or Modeling ApproachExperience or “Rule of Thumb” ApproachIt’s important to understand the differences between the approaches including which one best fits your property and the reliability of each approach.DETAILED ENGINEERING COST APPROACHThis approach compiles the costs from construction and accounting reports to build a report.

I’ve even had structural engineers say that a deck or other structure should have fallen down as well, according to their calculations.

@Phil SheltonYou would need a civil engineer to provide a drawing to get submitted to zoning and get a permit if it passes zoning is most common This also depends on the road - if it’s a state road forget it as it will take a year to get approved and cost a fortune - if it’s a local road process not as cumbersome but don’t expect this to happen quicklyIn some instances you may have to prepare sight distances etc to make sure it’s safe to add a curb cut

Make sure there are no Federal Pacific electrical panels. 

Quote from @Jeremy Dugan: I am a US Air Force and Massachusetts Air National Guard veteran with 20-years of experience as a military Civil Engineer.

Without electric you can not heat the unit.

I just wasn't sure if it is my responsibility to do something if the electric bill is high and are not satisfied. do I have to be concerned about that?