The courthouse, health department and jail may soon receive facelifts to the tune of $225,000.
Improvements to the buildings, including new outside trim, new air conditioning units, and a new canopy at the courthouse will come from an interest-bearing capital outlay note.
The canopy is needed at the courthouse due to the large number of people who must stand outside in the weather, including on recent rainy days, while waiting to enter the building through the newly installed metal detector.
Listed among the proposed improvements are:
At the courthouse:
• Fire alarm system replacement
• Replacement of air conditioning units
• Installation of a canopy over the front entrance
• Security system installation
• Repair and replacement of outside trim
At the jail:
• Replacement of light fixtures in the men’s cells
• Installation of steel in cells/ceilings
• Installation of razor wire fencing
• Gate reinforcements and repairs in the exercise yard
• Gate reinforcements and repairs at the back entrance
At the health department:
• Repairs to the air conditioning unit
The proposal also includes improvements to any other county building deemed necessary.
The fire alarm replacement at the courthouse has been mandated by the state fire marshal and required by the grand jury. The grand jury also recommended installing a security system at the courthouse. Bids for those two projects may come in higher than originally predicted due to the thickness of walls in the building.
“Some walls are two-and-a-half to three feet thick that wires must go through. And, there is a lot of wiring to be done up there,” said Commissioner Carl Bouldin.
Anyone wishing to bid on installing a fire alarm at the courthouse must attend a pre-bid meeting being held at the courthouse Jan. 22. “I want everyone to know exactly what they are bidding on. They need to see just how thick some of the walls are,” said County Executive John Pelham.
It has been several years since the trim and gutters have been worked on at the courthouse. “If you stand back and look up, it looks awful. Boards are rotten,” said Greg Bowdoin, head of county maintenance.
The quarter-million dollar proposal must gain the approval of the full Warren County Commission which will meet at 6:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 21.