The Carroll County Board of Supervisors tabled a discussion on the hiring of an architect or structural engineer to review potential changes in areas of the courthouse once the jail and Sheriff’s Office moves into their new space. Chair, Gene Meiners, used the basement as an example.
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Supervisor, Dean Schettler, asked if they would be able to define the scope of work. Meiners believes it needs to be broad, not to design yet, more of a determination of what is and is not load bearing. County Auditor, Kourtney Irlbeck, makes a suggestion based on the needs of individual departments.
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Supervisor, Rich Ruggles, wants to include a study of office efficiencies as well. Schettler has concerns an evaluation is not a big enough project and they may need to combine items to generate proposals. According to Ruggles, there are anticipated extra revenues, but there is still uncertainty about ways that money can be used. They also have to consider other possible infrastructure costs.
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On the other hand, Ruggles says, those issues are another argument for looking to hire an architect.
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Meiners agrees with Ruggles and confirms they are awaiting direction from the treasury on how they can utilize federal dollars. Initial indications are COVID-related expenses, such as air handling, would be considered a priority. Meiners says he does believe a study was conducted several years ago about ways to update the heating and cooling system without too much disruption. It was decided that more information would be requested from area counties on similar types of Requests for Proposals and that information will be presented at an upcoming meeting.