Kinder presents Saline County Commission with $90,000 check for courthouse roof renovation

From left: Saline County Northern District Commissioner Norvelle "Brownie" Brown, Presiding Commissioner Becky Plattner, Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder and Southern District Commissioner Dick Hassler. Kinder was in Marshall Thursday, March 6, to present a grant check for $90,000 to the commissioners. The money is earmarked for repairs to the courthouse roof. (Travis Watts/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge]

The renovation of the Saline County Courthouse got its first big financial boost Thursday, March 6, when Missouri Lt. Governor Peter Kinder visited to present the county commission with a $90,000 check.

The money, which was rewarded through the Missouri Heritage Properties Program, is being used to partially fund a roof replacement for the 125-year-old building.

"This is a beautiful historic building and we want to take care of it," said Kinder.

The funds will make a considerable dent in the estimated $207,000 needed to rehab the roof.

In addition to the roof, the county would eventually like to repair the entire courthouse. A complete renovation is expected to cost around $3.2 million.

Saline County residents will have the opportunity to vote on a 1/4-cent sales tax, which would be used to raise money for the project.

Kinder said he hopes this donation will encourage voters to pass the tax increase.

The Missouri Heritage Properties Program awarded renovation funding for 12 projects in Missouri; however, only one other county (Nodaway) received as much money as Saline.

"I appreciate being one of the top two projects in Missouri and being recognized for the importance of this building," said Presiding County Commissioner Becky Plattner.

"This is the very identity of our small towns," Kinder said of the projects funded by the Missouri Heritage Properties Program.

The state-funded program seeks to restore historical buildings throughout Missouri.

The Saline County Preservation Committee met Thursday night with county commissioners to discuss plans for promoting the sales tax issue.

On the agenda was refining a schedule of appearances committee members and commissioners will make at service clubs and other organizations throughout the county in coming weeks to provide information and answer questions about the courthouse renovation project.

Assistant Chairman Bryan Berlin, presiding in the absence of Lucy Fletcher, said he had given one presentation already and thought the response from the audience was very positive.

Plattner said at the meeting that the process of inviting bids for roof repairs would begin soon, now that the grant money is in-hand. But commissioners said it's too early to say exactly when work will begin.

The roof problems need to be addressed regardless of the ballot issue outcome, so commissioners plan to have as much work done as the grant money will allow.

Bill Sleeper, building and grounds supervisor, said the original roof on the building was slate. In fact, there are still a few slate shingles stashed in the clock tower that could have been original or from early repairs.

He's recommending a slate-like interlocking type shingle be used to replace the current shingles because of the almost continuous winds that buffet the roof of the building.

Contact Eric Crump at marshalleditor@socket.net