The Pulaski County Council has taken the first step toward replacing the courthouse elevator, while also giving their support to additional improvements. The existing elevator is considered too small to properly fit people using wheelchairs.
Council members voted Monday to pay for a $32,000 architectural, structural, and electrical engineering study out of the county’s Rainy Day Fund. Once that’s completed, the county will be able to solicit bids for the construction, giving county officials a better idea of how much the construction work will cost. Council members discussed paying for the eventual construction of the elevator out of the Rainy Day and County Adjusted Gross Income Tax funds.
At the same time, they also expressed interest in moving forward soon with other recommended repairs and improvements at the courthouse, for an estimated cost of $1.2 million. While grant funding may be available from the Indiana Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology, council members say the maximum $50,000 construction grant may not be worth the lengthy process it would take to get that money. Instead, the council may choose to dip into some of the county’s savings, avoiding the need to issue bonds, if possible.
