Courthouse rehab continues

Courthouse rehab continues

Office space upgrades move to second phase

news@theeveningtimes.com

Now that the county clerk’s main office has been renovated, Crittenden County accepted a new bid for phase two of the project to renovate the office space directly across the hall.

Justice Joe Marotti, who chairs the county’s buildings committee, said the low bid was for $17,385 from Suiter Construction.

The other bids were for $19,586 from Roeder Construction, which did the work on the first phase of the clerk’s office, and $20,110 from Petra Construction.

“They’re going to knock the wall out and take the carpet up and put new flooring down and paint it of course,” said County Clerk Paula Brown. “They are going to get us a counter to so when people come up to do early voting it will be so they will be able to just walk up to it.”

Home Depot will install the shades for $1,000.

The county spent about $26,000 to give the clerk’s office a much needed facelift. Contractors removed the old, dated wall paneling, put in drywall, painted the walls and installed new ceiling tile and flooring.

“It’s growing on me,” Brown joked.

The space across the hall is the last major office space on the first floor of the county courthouse left to renovate.

Brown said she expects the work will take about two to three weeks.

Past renovation projects have saved the county thousands of dollars.

The county spent $130,000 to renovate the old county health building in to office space for the county’s two circuit court judges which will save the county $30,000 a year in rent.

The county also spent $20,000 to renovate the former State Revenue Department office in the county office building into the headquarters for the election commission which will save taxpayers another $9,000 a year in rent.

Plans also call for moving the public defender’s office to the county building which would save another $15,000 a year, and another $20,000 to move the prosecutor’s office.

Marotti told the justices that there will also be a Phase 3 to renovate the file room as well.

By Mark Randall