The Courthouse Committee has taken its first official steps toward determining the future of the Greene County Courthouse.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS JOIN / OFFICERS ELECTED
Meeting Thursday afternoon, the five County Commissions appointed by the Mayor to serve on the Committee were introduced. Nick Gunter, Brad Peters, Jan Kiker, Tim Smithson and Teddy Lawing attended their first meeting.
Having now formed as a committee, election of a Chairman (Brad Peters), Vice Chair (Nick Gunter) and Secretary (Jan Kiker) was done so by acclimation.
MAYOR UPDATES OPTIONS
Mayor Kevin Morrison updated the Committee, especially the new members on the history of discussions related to the courthouse since the sewer issue was first noticed eighteen months ago.
”The purpose of this meeting is just to do exactly what we did, and to brief the five commissioners that we put on this committee with the options number, one with the conditions of this building, and the options that lie before us in trying to solve that issue.
There’s a myriad of options available to us.
Many of those are very expensive. Some are less expensive. And then there’s always the option to do what’s been done in the last 60 years and do nothing. I personally don’t feel that that is an option. Our job, our responsibility is to solve problems. And we’ve known that this has been a problem for a long time.”
OPTIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION
Options currently under consideration are:
Renovation of the restrooms in the current courthouse while the building remains in operation without adding any additional space for storage, which is estimated would take five to six million dollars and two years to accomplish.
Adding a bank of restrooms onto the building, with a somewhat modest, addition for storage, would take about eight months at a cost of somewhere near two million.
The option of renovating the restrooms would require executive potty trailers around the building. The estimated cost for that would be around $15,000 a month for the expected two year renovation.
The mayor is recommending the $500,000 Courthouse Renovation Grant be spent largely on updates to the main entrance fasad, which is in need of structural upgrades.
The most likely scenario for construction costs he says , would come out of capital projects. Whatever solution we do decide on he says, needs to be specifically and unequivocally stated will be done so without raising taxes.
Architect Dave Wright adding “it’s been looked at for the last six months, and just trying to come up with it an easy solution is not easy. I wish there was an easy solution but there’s not one.
MOVING FORWARD
Regardless of what option is chosen, the committee Thursday voted to authorized the mayor to proceed with core samples of Courthouse property and upon the recommendation of Tim Tweed, to assure easements for the property as well.
NEXT MEETING
Once core samples are complete, which should be in about a month, the committee will reconvene.
