The Greene County supervisors at their July 1 meeting approved an agreement with BBS Architects|Engineers for updated design services for the HVAC system at the courthouse. The additional cost is $52,568. The original planning cost was $134,850, but it was unknown as of Monday what the final total would be.
The next step in the years-old HVAC project will be to secure funding. The supervisors have discussed asking voters in the unincorporated areas of the county to approve a change in the revenue purpose statement for the local option sales and service tax (LOSST) that would allow that revenue to be used to repay bonds sold for the HVAC project. The question may be on the Nov. 5 general election ballot.
The supervisors approved a resolution noting the retirement of Maralie Ruth after 25 years working in the courthouse, with the first 23 of those being in the treasurer’s office. “Maralie has the best customer service of anybody in this place, and she’ll be sorely missed for that,” said Sherry Graven, who works in the county engineer’s office. “She helped I don’t know how many people with their driver’s license and everyone loved her and I appreciate that very much.”
County attorney Thomas Laehn talked with the supervisors about Senate File 2442, which was approved during the 2024 legislative session. The bill allows the supervisors in each county to decide whether to have a compensation board recommend salaries for county elected officials, as has been done for many years, or take upon themselves the responsibility of researching and determining wages themselves.
The supervisors would need to pass a resolution to establish a compensation board; if they do nothing, there will be no compensation. A decision doesn’t need to be made until the time the comp board would meet, which is typically in November or December.
“There are a lot of things to think about with this,” board chair John Muir said.
Laehn also told the supervisors that when the county purchased the office building and land from Midland Power Cooperative for the Law Enforcement Center and new jail, a communications tower on the property was owned by a third party. The purchase agreement did not include the tower. Now, though, Midland Power owns the tower and is willing to sell it to the county for $1. Laehn called it a “win-win.”
The county is building a new communications tower at Seven Hills Park to operate as part of the state system. The tower at the LEC will continue to be used as a microwave relay tower to the new tower.
The purchase of the tower will be on the supervisors’ July 7 agenda.
