The Greene County board of supervisors on Monday opted to spend $6,750 extra on renovating the third floor magistrate courtroom so it will look “historically cool” like the district courtroom.
Magistrate court was recently moved from the southeast corner of the first floor of the courthouse to the third floor for more efficiency and security for the county’s judicial duties.
The supervisors at their regular meeting Sept. 13 considered two quotes from Realwood Productions of Carroll – one which imitates the Greene County district courtroom’s backdrop and judge’s bench, and one which mirrors the Carroll County magistrate courtroom. They approved the $26,231 Greene County look rather than the $19,482 Carroll County look.
“Everything else on that (the third) floor is historically cool, and to date, our magistrate court hasn’t been cool, wherever it’s been located. It behooves us to do it top-notch so we can have that image,” board chair John Muir said. “It shows our commitment to preserve history.”
The cost will come from the general fund, though only a portion of it is in the current year budget, which began July 1. The cost was “a little more than foreseen,” county auditor Jane Heun said.
When the project first was discussed, the plan was to have county employees do more of the work. Professional woodworkers were used, instead, to assure the desired outcome.
The supervisors anticipate approving a purchase agreement with Realwood Productions at their Sept. 20 meeting.
The supervisors okayed a contract with SCI Communications for $8,153.21 for additional security for elections equipment. The cost will be reimbursed through a grant from the Iowa Secretary of State.
The board also adopted a new 28E agreement with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources assigning water well construction permitting authority to the county. County sanitarian Chuck Wenthold said the changes from the previous 28E agreement primarily have to do with the procedure for permitting wells at contaminated sites.
Jefferson city administrator Mike Palmer provided his monthly update. He said city staff and the city engineer are using input from a neighborhood meeting to draft a preliminary plan and then determine cost estimates for work on W. Lincoln Way from Elm St to Grimmell Road. “We got a lot of really good input, some really good suggestions,” Palmer said.
The project is still two years out from “getting off the ground,” he added.
Palmer reported that bids ranging from $890,000 to $990,000 were opened last week for the construction of the new Greene County animal shelter. The city council has 60 days to act to accept a bid. City staff is now working through quantity counts and other details on the bids received. Palmer said the council will not take action until staff “takes some time to look it over.”
County engineer Wade Weiss added to Palmer’s report information about the farm-to-market bridge on Grimmell just inside the west city limits. The bridge is on a main route used for hauling grain. Weiss said he received notification that work on the bridge would not be funded this year, but that the bridge was next in line. He helped the city apply for $1 million in funding, and had done some preliminary work on the project with the Army Corps of Engineers. He’s also working on solving some right-of-way issues.
Weiss anticipates the city will receive funding in the next couple of years.
He explained that although the bridge is in the Jefferson city limits, it meets requirements needed to apply for county bridge funds as well. The county could receive up to $2 million for the project. Weiss estimates the total project at more than $2 million.
“We’re attempting to get this done in a fashion that doesn’t impact the taxpayers of the city or the county,” Weiss said.
Conservation director Tanner Scheuermann reported Mark Keenan has resigned from the conservation board. Persons interested in being appointed to the board should contact Scheuermann.
