LaSalle County buildings and grounds staff reported Thursday that aging chillers and rooftop condensing units serving the county jail and criminal justice center likely require replacement, and that the work could cost in the high hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The county's buildings and grounds supervisor, Bob (staff member), told the County Property Committee that parts are hard to obtain for roughly 26-year-old units and that multiple compressors, motors and cooling-tower components have failed this summer. “It’s hard to find parts for units that are 26 years old,” Bob said, noting a three-week wait already for a replacement compressor and uncertainty about lead times for other components.

The discussion centered on a consultant report (KED Bluestone) distributed at the meeting. Committee member Kurt (staff member) said the consultant added language recommending replacement of the jail chillers and that the engineer estimated roughly $900,000 to replace the units if equipment that could be brought into the basement could be identified. “He estimated $900,000 for that,” Kurt said when summarizing the report.

Why it matters: the jail and the criminal justice center share backup systems; committee members and staff warned that further failures this summer could create dangerous heat conditions for inmates and staff and complicate courthouse operations. Bob said much of the work likely must be done in cooler months and that installing large new chillers will be complicated because “they literally built the building around the chillers in the basement.”

Next steps: the committee agreed to invite the consulting engineer, Ryan, and the sheriff for a technical briefing at the July 11 committee meeting to review options, costs and the feasibility of delivering equipment into the basement. Kurt said the engineer is researching whether replacement equipment could be procured and staged in time for winter; he warned it may not be possible and that the project could slip into 2026. No formal appropriation or contract award was made at the meeting.

The buildings and grounds supervisor also said staff will pursue stocking critical spare parts when available so single failures do not leave systems down for weeks. Committee members asked that the July briefing include clearer cost breakdowns and options for phasing work if full replacement cannot be completed before next cooling season.