Pierce Co. Board delays proposal to move ahead with judicial center plans

By Judy Wiff

ELLSWORTH - Pierce County Board members voted 9-7 Tuesday morning to table a resolution to move ahead with plans for a new jail/judicial center.

If adopted, the resolution would have permitted spending up to $250,000 on the design development stage of the plan.

The resolution said Finance Committee members agreed on Oct. 15 that "it is in the best interests of the county to proceed with planning and constructing the judicial center."

Since, the board held a meeting Oct. 27, supposedly to gather input from the public, that creates "an integrity problem," complained Supervisor Bill Schroeder.

"You paid no attention to what people had to say at the meeting," said Schroeder. "Why have the meeting even?"

Later in the meeting, other supervisors said the information in the resolution was wrong. The Finance Committee action was taken Sept. 29 and the committee voted to pass the matter on to the full board and let that body decide whether to proceed with judicial center plans.

Schroeder said holding one informational meeting isn't enough. He said supervisors should hold more meetings throughout the county.

"How do your constituents know what's going on if you don't go there and explain what's going on?" he asked.

"All of a sudden now we've got a slam dunk here today," said Schroeder, who worried that adopting the resolution would irrevocably commit the board to the project. "This is it, folks. This resolution is a done deal; we just spent $17 million."

Proceeding into the next stage wouldn't mean giving final approval, replied County Board Chairman Dick Wilhelm. The board would have other votes as it went along, including a vote to bond, he said.

"There's no turning back. There's no looking at what people suggested," said Schroeder, who disagreed.

Supervisor Jerry Kosin suggested that the board hold more public meetings, especially in the Prescott area.

Supervisor Judy Clement-Lee asked if anyone had figured out the cost of buying property to expand the jail at its current site.

There was no concrete study done on that cost, replied Wilhelm.

"You're not alone, Bill, in your thoughts," Clement-Lee assured Schroeder.

The $250,000 for design development work stayed in the budget adopted by the board at the same meeting.

In other business, the board:

voted to transfer $3,023 from the General Fund to the Women, Infant and Children Fund to cover deficits from 1998.

approved payment of $990 in dog damage claims. The animals reported injured or killed by dogs included a cat, a calf, a miniature pony, three chickens, and a turkey. The board disallowed claims for several deer.

voted to pay local cemeteries $5,520 for the care of 1,840 soldiers' graves.

appointed Betty Gunderson of Ellsworth, Phyllis Fuller of Ellsworth, and Jim Hanson of Maiden Rock to 3-year terms on the Council on Aging.