By Sara Strong
The Rock County Courthouse will get building improvements that the county sees as saving money in the long-term. The bill for the improvements is $656,000 from the private firm Johnson Controls.
Board of Commissioners Chairman Ron Boyenga said, "It might sound funny when we’re talking about how bad the budgets are to do improvements, but government has to go on and this is a good time to borrow money with the interest rates."
There are some mold issues in the courthouse, and the boiler is almost 40 years old, converted from a steam to hot water boiler years ago.
There is no back-up heat source, and a new boiler system would improve energy efficiency.
An upgraded cooling system is also a part of the contract, along with increasing heating and cooling receivers for specific areas of the courthouse that aren’t currently reached effectively, and ventilation improvements.
New lighting was at first considered to be an unnecessary part of the building improvements, but Johnson Controls estimates a savings of $4,000 a year in utility costs just from the lighting.
The county can bond for up to $295,000 of the costs and finance the rest through Johnson Controls.
The Commissioners decided against further improvements in the Highway Department building.
Work will go on during regular business hours for much of the project, trying to adjust for employee needs — such as the auditor’s office during tax season.
