MISSISSIPPI COUNTY COURTHOUSE DELAYED FURHTER

CHARLESTON -- Mississippi County commissioners have delayed the completion date of the Mississippi County Courthouse for a third time because of difficulties in receiving supplies.

The delay will not cost the contractor because the county didn't include a time-delay clause in its contract.

"We didn't know how long it would take and neither did they, so we just elected not to build that in it," said Presiding Commissioner Jim Blumenberg.

Blumenberg said delays in receiving limestone needed for the building's exterior have kept the general contractor, C.A. Walker Construction Co., from completing work on the exterior.

The commission Friday voted to approve a different vendor who guaranteed a supply shipment within two weeks.

"They're supposed to have us some here within two weeks so we can get started," Blumenberg said. "There will be no price change."

Blumenberg said the delays mean the courthouse won't be completed until early November, two months later than projections made in April.

The original completion date was July 5.

"I think the contractor was off course from the beginning with that July 5," he said. "We're about three-fourths of the way complete now, and we're looking at Nov. 1 as our completion date."

The second floor and roof of the 96-year-old courthouse were destroyed by fire in February 1997. Investigators soon determined the fire was deliberately set. Blumenberg said the investigation is ongoing.

The building is being rebuilt at the same location in downtown Charleston. Soon after the fire, voters approved a three-year, half-cent sales tax to cover some construction costs.20The sales tax will generate $1.2 million before it expires next year. Blumenberg said about $1 million from insurance claims and $200,000 in county funds will cover the remaining construction costs.

"We're still on budget for roughly $2.4 million," he said. "The last three or four weeks have been aggravating, but we have been getting things done on the inside."

Contractors have made good progress on the building's interior and on adjoining sidewalks, Blumenberg said. By acquiring a new stone-materials vendor, work will continue on schedule so the new structure can be occupied as soon as possible.

The county has been paying $32,000 annually for temporary quarters in East Prairie. Blumenberg said the lease is now on a monthly renewal basis, and judicial and government offices will move into the new structure soon after its completion.

"Hopefully we'll have all the furniture and things in place so we can move just as soon as they give us the word," he said.