Pulaski County is moving ahead with accessibility upgrades to the courthouse restrooms.
On Monday, the county council approved an additional appropriation of $28,430 from the Cumulative Capital Development Fund to turn the two existing restrooms into four unisex bathrooms. “The doorways, the seats, the hand-driers, everything will fit ADA compliance regulations, and when they’re done, that will be a problem of the past,” Maintenance Supervisor Jeff Johnston told council members. “We won’t have to worry about that anymore.”
Johnston added the county will save some money by having its own maintenance staff do the cosmetic work. “So once the walls are put in and the plumbing’s done, and everything’s wired up, all the cosmetic stuff, the maintenance department will handle, and kind of have it fit in with the rest of what we’re doing in the basement,” he said.
Johnston said that funding for ADA compliance was not included when the restroom project began. “The problem was the commissioners at the time chose not to go forward with the ADA remodel of the bathroom and instead just to go with the repair of the sewer issues,” he explained. “So that’s the money I came back for, and it left us with bathrooms in their current condition. I’ve been working with the current commissioners, who are inspired to get these issues taken care of.” He added that he doesn’t have a set time-line yet for when the work will be completed.
Johnston is also planning upgrades to the County Office Building on Riverside Drive – specifically, improvements to the electrical system and repairs to the exterior. But he said he still has to do more research before he’s ready to make a formal funding request.
