Crawford County commissioners on Monday instructed maintenance staff to solicit competitive bids to replace two failing boilers at the county Judicial Center and discussed possible grant sources to cover related courthouse repairs and energy-efficiency upgrades.

The move follows testimony from Karen Crowe, who identified herself as a member of the county maintenance department, that the Judicial Center currently has one aging boiler that is “original” and another that is about 10 years old and starting to fail. Crowe told the commission estimates for work at the Judicial Center ranged from roughly $12,000 for repairs to about $75,000 to replace both boilers and install fully modulating, higher-efficiency units.

County grant coordinator Gus Brunetti, who identified himself as “Crawford County, Granite Rider,” told commissioners some grant programs are limited to historical properties while others have a broader scope. Brunetti said the courthouse is the county’s only formally registered historic site, which affects eligibility: “If we want to do the courthouse, it would be better to do it under historical preservation since it's a historical site,” he said. He recommended applying to the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) commercial rehabilitation program or the Build Kansas Fund for broader work that could cover both the courthouse and the Judicial Center.

The CDBG commercial rehabilitation program Brunetti described allows requests up to $300,000 with a match requirement (he said up to a 25% match in some cases and mentioned a 5% in-kind match for some applications). He also noted the Kansas Infrastructure Hub is a rolling program open through 2027 and the Kansas Historical Society Heritage Trust Fund targets historic properties and is typically a reimbursement program. Brunetti said the USDA Community Facilities Grant might cover up to 75% of eligible work if coordinated with the city of Girard because of population thresholds.

Commissioners discussed using an existing reserve of ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds to move quickly if necessary. County staff indicated a line for “special projects and courthouse maintenance” showing about $61,061.06 in available funds. Chair (name not specified) moved that the maintenance department solicit bids for two boilers for the Judicial Center; the motion was seconded and approved. The commission asked staff to return with bids and cost breakdowns, and instructed Brunetti to pursue applicable grants concurrently.

Crowe and other maintenance staff emphasized that repairing a 24-year-old boiler for roughly $12,000 would not provide substantial efficiency gains and that replacement with modern, modulating boilers would produce fuel savings that are “tough to quantify” without demand and temperature data. Crowe said a single boiler replacement at the courthouse would be about $34,000 and that retrofitting a heat exchanger would be in the low $20,000s.

Commissioners directed staff to obtain three written bids before asking the commission to award work, and they discussed the possibility of saving one replaced unit as a spare for the county jail, where similar models are installed.

The commission also asked Brunetti to map grant application deadlines and reimbursement schedules, and to coordinate with Girard officials if the USDA option is pursued, since eligibility depends on local population thresholds.

Clarifying details discussed during the meeting included the range of cost estimates (about $12,000 repair to $75,000 replacement for the Judicial Center), an estimated $34,000 to replace a single courthouse boiler, an in-hand ARPA/special-projects balance of about $61,061.06, and that the CDBG commercial rehabilitation program can accept applications up to $300,000 with various match requirements.

Commissioners asked for a follow-up meeting in one to two weeks and for staff to return with bid estimates, a list of items to include in grant applications (basement repairs, boilers, and HVAC), and calculations or a vendor estimate for projected fuel savings from modern modulating boilers.