County facilities staff report leaks, plumbing replacements and aging generators at multiple sites

LaSalle County facilities staff reported a series of building maintenance items on March 14, including continuing roof repairs, replacement of old galvanized water lines downtown, upgrades to HVAC controls at a county residential facility and problems with aging backup generators at multiple sites.

Facilities manager Bob (staff) said contractors have been on site to repair leaks on recently replaced roofs, and that the roofing work remains in a contractor ‘detail’ phase that has not yet reached substantial completion or warranty activation. “They still have what they call detail work to do and they still have to reinstall the lightning protection,” he said, adding the contractor remains financially liable for incomplete work while the county holds retention on the project.

Bob also showed photos of a replacement hot‑water line in the downtown courthouse where old galvanized pipe was replaced with copper and new isolation valves. He said asbestos removal was required to enable the repairs and that new valves will allow the county to isolate sections of the heating system. “We went with copper and new valves so we could isolate certain areas in the building,” he said.

At the county residential facility (the “D home”), Bob reported replacement of valves and piping and installation of new electronic valves tied into the county’s building management system. Two residential units were being renovated to replace old, rusted piping.

Staff reported repeated problems with several generators. One 23‑year‑old generator exhibited noises and required replacement of high‑limit switches and other components; a separate, older generator had disconnects that failed to reengage after a transformer failure and required temporary manual intervention to restore power. “Some of the generators are 23, 45 years old or so; things are happening now,” Bob said. He asked the committee for authority to obtain price quotes to modernize controls and disconnects on affected units.

Committee members questioned the value received from the county’s annual generator service contractor. A member said the county pays approximately $150,000 a year for generator maintenance and noted recent failures despite routine checks and load testing. Bob said the contractor documents observed issues and the county instructs repairs, but that older equipment can fail between inspections.

The committee asked staff to obtain estimates for: replacement or refurbishment of the East Side disconnects, modernization of generator controls at the East Side generator, and planned lifecycle guidance for older generators. Kurt (engineer/staff) agreed to consult with an electrical engineer and report expected useful life estimates at the next meeting.

No formal votes were taken on capital replacements during the March 14 meeting; staff were asked to return with cost estimates, warranty details and proposed timelines for any recommended replacements so the committee can consider budget amendments or capital requests.