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Kootenai County staff say move-in remains on track but warn of tariff and delivery risks
Summary
County staff told commissioners the building’s bulk furniture orders are placed and prices locked, and the project remains on track for a certificate of occupancy in about eight weeks, but supplier delays from tariffs and an outstanding door order could still cause last-minute hold-ups.
Kootenai County staff told the Board of County Commissioners that the county remains on track to obtain a certificate of occupancy for the new building in roughly eight weeks, but cautioned that supplier delays related to tariffs and a not-yet-delivered door order could affect the schedule.
In a progress update presented to commissioners, a county staff member said, “the bulk of our products are ordered. So, we did get confirmation that the furniture has been ordered. So we won't have any additional pricing on that. We're locked in.” The staff member added that most orders are prepaid and in place, but that a door order and some seating outside courtrooms had not yet been installed or ordered.
Why this matters: the certificate of occupancy sets the deadline for move-in and operations. Delays to long-lead items such as doors or specialized seating could push installation work into the final weeks and affect occupancy timing.
Staff identified two specific risks. First, they said a supplier’s estimating department has been backed up “because of tariffs,” producing a rush on orders that could create “potential challenges,” although they emphasized this was not yet “critical to the move in or the occupancy of the building.” Second, the staff member singled out a door order as the clearest remaining vulnerability: “The only thing that I could see delay that is if the door order, for example, is pushing off again … until we have that product on-site we can't fully 100% guarantee that.”
Contractor Bowden was mentioned by staff as coordinating final inspections; staff said Bowden had been “really good at working through any issues that are coming up” related to final inspections. The county has not placed an order for beam seating outside the courtrooms; staff said they would present final pricing for that item before placing any order.
No formal action or vote was recorded on the update. After the presentation, the board moved to the next agenda item.
The board did not provide additional schedule changes during the meeting. Staff said they would provide further updates and options if supplier or delivery issues develop.
