The council’s vote took place at the end of a joint meeting with the county commissioners at the county highway meeting room in Winamac, following an hour-long discussion of the project and its costs. About 20 people attended the meeting; most appeared to support the courthouse restoration.

The commissioners voted in December 2019 to approve the project, choosing an option presented earlier in the year by architect Eric Rowland that would renovate the historic 1895 courthouse, and move the circuit court across the street to an enhanced justice center.

But a year later (and an election which brought four new members to the commissioners/council), elected officials have demonstrated some moments of hesitation in moving forward.

At last week’s meeting of the council, county auditor Laura Wheeler spoke out against the project, particularly with putting money into the justice center before renovations at the courthouse. And earlier this year, the commissioners delayed approval of a contract for a construction manager.

Meeting with the commissioners Monday, some council members began revisiting the approved plans, looking for areas to trim the project to save money. Suggestions ranged from cutting back on the scope of construction, to various scenarios for relocating county offices and departments. Some of the discussion was also a revisit to proposals considered and discarded 18 months ago.

And an urgent issue which remains all these months later is the matter of security, particularly for the circuit and superior courts. The judges from both courts, Mary Welker and Crystal Kocher, along with Sheriff Jeff Richwine were present at the meeting and spoke emotionally about their concerns and even fears for their employees – particularly involving court appearances by jail inmates.

Every courthouse in the counties surrounding Pulaski has addressed this security issue (as have nearly all in the rest of the state). Most of the historic courthouses in the area have also undergone extensive restoration work.

The Pulaski County Courthouse has not been in compliance with state and federal security requirements for some time. Judge Kocher pointed out this circumstance leaves the county vulnerable to legal liabilities that could prove more costly than construction costs.

It is largely for this reason the justice center work will begin first in order to move the circuit court to its new, secure location.

Boswell assured those present at Monday’s meeting that a lot of thought, study and reasoning went into developing plans for the courthouse/justice center project.

Councilwoman Kathi Thompson concurred. “The architects know what they’re doing. They spent hours interviewing the office holders, learning their jobs and needs,” she explained. “They know how much filing space the circuit court needs, what a jury needs and so on. It is not our job to tell the architects how to do their jobs.”

Indeed, architect Rowland gave a public presentation in August 2019 following a comprehensive study of the courthouse structure earlier that year where he emphasized the courthouse remains structurally sound. He added the primary goals of the architecture firm are to stabilize the structure and modernize systems (which would lead to increased energy savings).

See: Study reveals courthouse is structurally sound, can be restored for modern functionality (PulaskiPost.com August 2019)

Pulaski County CDC executive director Nathan Origer pointed out at Monday’s meeting efforts to scale back or adjust the approved plans will cause further delay of the project and additional costs as the architect revises plans. Origer has been overseeing the development of the project for the commissioners/council, although the assignment has not been made a part of his job description.

The county has spent approximately $402,000 on the projects to date, not including some attorney fees and other costs – money the county will never see benefits from if it walks away from the project.