Justice Center comes in $4 million under budget as County eyes Veterans Memorial

The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday, Mar. 10. Commissioners heard agenda items including Justice Center updates, Veterans Memorial talks, and airport funding.

Julie Dotsenrod from The Tegra Group, along with Kyle Hubers from Henry Carlson and Lynn Remers from JLG Architect, were present to give an update on the Lincoln County Justice Center. 

“The site work has come a long way this past year as we were able to take advantage of the good weather. All the curb and gutter work, most of the exterior landscape elements as far as footings, foundations, and paving is all in,” Hubers said. 

Inside, Hubers reports that the third-floor space is nearing its final finishes, including wall coverings, carpet, doors, and hardware. 

Commissioner Jim Schmidt asked Hubers how the project is doing budget-wise. 

“We are currently $4 million under budget, an update we are excited to share as Commissioners Landeen, Otten, and the whole team have worked really hard from the beginning to find cost reduction strategies and risk assessment so we’re able to find savings,” Hubers replied. Chairwoman Tiffani Landeen thanked Hubers for his report.

Building Superintendent, John Rombough requested the commission consider a motion to authorize the chair to amend the Professional Service Agreement with JLG Architect to include the development of a concept, rendering, and cost estimate for a future Veterans Memorial at the Lincoln County Justice Center site for a cost of $26,950. 

“There’s been discussions for many years about the county making a Veterans Memorial in combination with adding to the city’s veterans memorial, which is on the back side of the courthouse, or something to stand alone all by itself. Commissioner Schmidt has always been a high supporter of this type of project, and we discussed getting ahead of the game if we’re going to add it to this future project because we might need to modify things,” he said. 

Stockwell’s Lead Landscape Architect, David Lock, was present to answer questions from the commission. 

“The memorial could potentially fit between the two parking lots off to the side of the building where it would fit seamlessly with the current site plan and also potential future buildouts that may occur at the campus,” he said. 

Chairwoman Landeen asked how long the engineering work would take. 

“The concepts and rendering work will begin right away, so I would expect we could have that done in two weeks,” he responded. 

Commissioner Betty Otten opposed the funding for the project, stating it should be a community project, not a Lincoln County project and the memorial should include the National Guard. 

“This has always been talked about, it never was a part of the original project and one of the main concerns was the cost. I’ve talked to folks about it and am met with the question of what do you want to do? This is going to give us something to say, here’s what we want to do, and then maybe get fundraising dollars to complete the project,” Chairwoman Landeen responded. 

Chairwoman Landeen opened the floor for public comment. Sherry McKenny stood to speak. 

“I agree with Betty on the price and this is something that doesn’t need to be done for the Justice Center to be opened. I believe Betty said that it was putting the cart before the horse and while I do believe that a veterans memorial is very lovely and needed, I also think instead of having a JLG design that you actually look at local contractors who do landscape,  hardscape and design because we have some very talented individuals who are capable of designing and putting these kinds of structures in,” she said. 

Motion to approve was made by Schmidt, seconded by Joel Arends, it passed 4-1 with Otten being the nay vote.

Airport Manager, David Myers requested the commission consider a motion to approve advertising for bids for Phase 1 Construction on the South 20 Acres at the Lincoln County Airport. Myers has been in meetings with the FAA to go over grant assurances throughout airports in the Midwest. 

“Our grant came up to start phase one of the south 20 acres, which is the infrastructure for the taxiways. We talked a little bit about our airport and how it’s moving forward because of what we’ve done in the past. They 100% agree on moving forward with phase one of the infrastructure for the taxis in the south 20 acres,” he said. 

Myers estimates the total cost of the project to be around $900,000, with the county’s obligation being 2.5%. Motion made to approve by Schmidt, seconded by Otten, motion carried 4-1 with Doug Putnam being the nay vote.

Sheriff Steve Swenson requested that the commission consider a motion to authorize the Sheriff’s Office to purchase a bus chassis to be used as a transport vehicle for the jail division, not to exceed $86,000. 

“In my budget for this year, I budgeted $70,000 for a Ford transit van, and we have one currently that we bought in 2024 for $57,000. In order for the staff to get the inmates in the back seat, they have to crawl into the van, and in a meeting one of the transporters said that van is not very safe, and we have two of them,” Sheriff Swenson said. 

The Sheriff is requesting authorization to purchase a bus using Sourcewell, who provides government contracts up to but not to exceed $86,000. A quote was received for a 2022 Starcraft Starlitle shuttle on a Freightliner Chassis. The cost of this bus is $85,900. The office is also waiting for an official bid on a 2023 Mercedes Starcraft Starlight shuttle from Sourcewell. Motion was made to approve by Otten, seconded by Arends, motion carried.