Pope County committee approves personnel overlap and advances $250,000 courthouse remodel plan

The Pope County Personnel & Budget Committee on March 31 approved temporary staffing overlaps to cover upcoming retirements, authorized several small appropriations and voted to send a proposed $250,000 courthouse remodel to the full quorum court for final approval.

Assessor Dana Baker asked the committee to allow her office to hire an experienced assessor in October so the new hire can overlap two long‑tenured employees who will retire at the end of 2026. Baker said she plans to eliminate one position in 2027 after the transition. The committee agreed to forward the personnel and related funding request to the full court for final action.

"I would like to hire her in October of this year so she would have three months on board before my two retire," Baker said, describing the candidate’s roughly 30 years of assessment experience and prior roles at an appraisal company, Johnson County and the state assessment coordination division.

The committee also approved an add‑on request from Pam that the accounts payable employee Shannon be replaced in late May or early June so the new hire can train before Shannon moves to the treasurer’s human‑resources office on Aug. 31. The committee approved a three‑month funding amount of $12,787 to cover that overlap.

A small pass‑through grant also won approval: the committee accepted $1,818 from the Pope County Community Foundation to be routed through the county and issued to the volunteer Hector First Response Team.

The most substantial item was a courthouse‑remodel proposal presented by the county building department. The plan would remodel the existing committee room and entryway to open circulation (creating a roughly 12‑foot hallway), convert the room into a circuit‑court hearing space for bench hearings (not jury trials), install ballistic sheathing over interior windows and upgrade audio‑visual systems and millwork. Architect estimates put the project at about $250,000.

Ben, the building‑department representative, told the committee the law library board has agreed to contribute $75,000 toward the project and that the county expects roughly $57,226.10 in federal reimbursements related to prior ADA/energy work. Ben said line‑item estimates for audio‑visual, millwork and related work add to about $232,000, and that state procurement rules mean the county must have funds legally available before soliciting bids.

A committee member voiced concern that advertising a $250,000 estimate before bids are solicited could undermine competitive pricing: "They're not going to try to undercut that," the member said. Ben responded that his breakdown supports the estimate and that architects and engineers of record will add customary percentages required by state law.

The committee voted to advance the appropriation request to the full quorum court; the law library board is scheduled to meet separately to pass a resolution authorizing its $75,000 contribution, which county staff said will be transferred back into county general once the library acts.

Separately, the committee authorized repairs at the detention center funded from the commissary fund after staff reported a failed 2014 water‑storage tank for the boiler system. Committee members were told the kitchen air‑conditioning compressor is priced at roughly $11,000 and that additional pod‑block wall work may be needed; funding lines will be allocated depending on final invoices.

Chair previewed other items to be taken up at Thursday’s full court meeting, including vehicle transfers of decommissioned county vehicles (to be listed by VIN in an ordinance), an NRC annual report and the law‑library resolution tied to the remodel funding.

Next steps: the full quorum court will consider the personnel funding and the $250,000 remodel appropriation at its upcoming meeting; the law library board must pass its resolution before county staff can transfer the committed funds back into county general.