Jackson County changes course, OKs $9M for new offices and move out of courthouse
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct that Monday’s vote was only to spend $9 million for the purchase of a new building. A vote to spend $6 million on renovations will come later.
The Jackson County legislature changed its mind — or at least enough legislators did.
Two weeks ago, by a 6-1 vote (with two legislators absent), the legislature voted against a proposal floated by Jackson County Executive Frank White to spend $9 million to purchase an existing office building downtown and spruce it up with $6 million in renovations.
Under the plan, county departments and the legislature would move out of the 15-story downtown courthouse and into the new building, freeing up space in the courthouse for the 16th Circuit Court and Jackson County Prosecutor.
Backers of the $15 million plan argued it was needed because the courthouse, built in 1934 at 415 E. 12th St., is cramped and in desperate need of repair.
Administrative offices need to be elsewhere, backers said, to make room in the courthouse so workers could gradually get the old building back in shape: a job that could cost up to $255 million.
On Monday, some no votes turned to yes votes following a move to have the bill reconsidered. By a count of 6 to 3, the legislature approved the purchase of a building at 1300 Washington St. for $9 million. The vote to spend up to $6 in renovations would come later.
“I am disappointed,” said legislator Theresa Galvin, who is chairwoman of the budget committee and had led the opposition to the proposal. “I voted no still. I don’t think it’s a good idea. I don’t think it’s good for our taxpayers. We’re looking at $15 million of our taxpayers’ money that could be spent elsewhere.”
Galvin maintains that the purchase is not a good deal: first, because the county will be spending $9 million to buy a building whose value, county records show, is assessed at $6 million. Second, as owners of the building, the county will no longer receive the annual $200,000 the building brought to the county in property taxes. Third, while Galvin does not argue that the courthouse needs to be redone, she believes that administrative staff could have been moved into vacant office space elsewhere that county already owns.
“It’s not going to be good for the people of Jackson County,” she said.
In the original vote, only Charlie Franklin voted for buying the building. Two legislators, Scott Burnett and Tony Miller, had been absent for that vote. Legislative rules allow for new votes to be taken if a piece of legislation fails and one or more of the original dissenters ask for it to be reconsidered.
On Monday, Galvin voted against the purchase, as did Dan Tarwater and Jeanie Lauer. Franklin, Burnett, Miller, Ronald Finley, Jalen Anderson and Crystal Williams voted for it. But last week, Williams made a motion for the proposal to be reconsidered.
“Today, I proudly supported the County Executive because it’s the right thing to do,” Williams said, in a statement released by the county. “This new building is an opportunity for us to do good by our associates, many of whom have dedicated decades of service to the county in less than favorable conditions. And to me, that is unacceptable. Providing our associates a first-class, modern space with easier parking and ADA accessibility will only improve the level of customer service we deliver to constituents.
“It’s a win-win and I commend my fellow colleagues who stood with me by voting in favor of this essential investment.”
Built in 1997, the building at 1300 Washington St. has three floors and 82,664 square feet of space. It will take 60 to 90 days to close on the property. The county estimates it would be at least another year for the $6 million in renovations to be complete and for staff from the current building to begin moving.
Court sessions will still be held at the courthouse. Jackson County spokeswoman Marshanna Smith said that opening up space will allow courts to be relocated within the building as it undergoes extensive upgrades that could take up to 10 years and up to $255 million.
Electrical systems, plumbing, fire protection, mechanical systems, heating and cooling and more need to be replaced.
“Completing this work requires the relocation of county staff to create the flex space that is needed to do improvements,” the county said in a statement.
The county also leases office space outside the courthouse and has some operations in the historic Truman Courthouse at the center of Independence Square.
The 13th and 14th floors of the 12th Street courthouse sit empty. For decades they were home to the county jail and haven’t been used for anything but storage since prisoners were moved into the Jackson County Detention Center 40 years ago.
Administrator Troy Schulte said the plan is to redo the building in phases over the next 10 to 15 years on a pay-as-you-go basis. The county in the last several years had to replace the building’s elevators, pipe in cold air when the air conditioning system broke and do extensive repairs to courtrooms damaged by leaky plumbing.
This story was originally published April 4, 2022 at 6:42 PM.
