Crawford County Commissioners authorize bids to replace Judicial Center boilers, discuss grant options for courthouse repairs

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…