County approves $1.29 million to replace 30 HVAC units at jail

The Ross County Commission approved Resolution 061526054 on June 15 to replace 30 HVAC units at the county jail at a cost of $1,287,832. Commissioner C. introduced the measure, saying the units were past their life span and the county could not afford for them to fail.

Commissioner C. said, “they're past their life span and we can't afford to have them go down. It's a $1,287,832.” The commission moved to suspend the rules to permit a second reading the same night; Commissioner Head seconded the suspension and the suspension passed by voice vote. After the second reading, the commission approved the resolution by voice vote.

The presenter characterized the measure as a balanced capital outlay expense and noted that the county has been setting aside reserve funds in recent years to cover emergencies and unplanned infrastructure needs. A commissioner observed that prior proactive budgeting had prevented the need to borrow or deplete general fund balances to pay for urgent repairs.

The commission’s action authorizes the replacement work and the use of county funds as described in the resolution. The resolution was presented and approved during the June 15 meeting; the transcript does not specify the procurement timeline, contract award process, or an installation schedule.

The commission did not record a roll-call tally in the transcript; the resolution passed by voice vote.

The commission’s next steps, as recorded in the meeting, are administrative: finalize procurement, award contracts according to procurement rules, and schedule installation; no implementation dates were provided in the meeting record.