National Register courthouse

Southeast Missourian

BENTON, Mo. -- Last year brought Scott County closer to preserving the centerpiece of its county seat.

The current Scott County Courthouse in Benton, Mo., was built in 1912. It's the fifth courthouse to be built on the site. In the 91 years since its construction the communities the building serves have grown exponentially.

To meet the county's needs in the new millennium as well as preserve its history, the county in 2001 took initial steps to put the courthouse on the National Register of Historic Places. This month, the county received official notification that the courthouse has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The National Register is overseen by the National Park Service. Its purpose is to preserve pieces of American history, architecture, archeology, engineering and culture. Buildings listed with the National Register can receive protection from demolition and preference for federal grants that can be used for improvements to the building or its surrounding property.

Federal grant

One of these federal grants prompted the county to begin the application process. When the courthouse needed a new elevator, the county turned to the federal government to help fund the project. In order to apply for a federal grant the county also had to apply for National Register status.

The elevator has been installed and is up and running, said Scott County Commissioner Jamie Burger. "Applying was part of the grant, but we could receive the money before finding out whether we got National Register."

The Scott County Historical Society originally undertook the task of filing paperwork. The legwork led to other improvements in the courthouse including rewiring the second floor of the three-story building and replacing window air conditioning units with a central air system.

The application was first submitted to the state Advisory Council on Historic Preservation in Jefferson City. The state advisory council heard a presentation on the county's application last December.

Dr. Bonnie Stepenoff, a historic preservation professor at Southeast Missouri State University, is also on the state advisory board. She sat on the panel that approved the courthouse's application and forwarded it to the keeper of the National Register in Washington, D.C., for review. The keeper had 90 days from the time the application is received to review it and either confer or deny National Register status, Stepenoff said.

Once the state approves an application, though, the national level rarely denies status, Stepenoff said.

"Most of the real-world homework is done at the state level," she said. "The national level is mostly a quality control check."

New jail

While one Scott County landmark was being preserved, another saw its last days during 2003.

The old Scott County jail was "designed as a dungeon would be in the 1600s," Scott County Sheriff Bill Ferrell once said. The 71-year-old structure was undersized and ill-equipped to meet the county's needs.

With funds gleaned from three years of a half-cent law enforcement sales tax, the county was able to replace Southeast Missouri's oldest jail with a new $4.8 million facility.

The new jail houses inmates in seven separate pods with eight cells in each pod housing two prisoners apiece. That doubles the county's holding capacity. On a given day around 90 prisoners will be in the jail, though as many as 108 inmates have been held in the 120-bed facility.

The new jail is also safer for inmates and guards, both through design and the setup of 32 cameras controlled by a central touch-screen panel. The cameras are trained on prisoner rooms and common areas.

Future improvements include a video arraignment setup that will keep deputies from having to transport prisoners across the street to the courthouse.

"Transportation cost has been decreased with the new building," Burger said. "We have more control of prisoners and can keep them in our own facility."

The building was opened to the public on Jan. 25, 2003, and prisoners were slowly transferred to the new building between February and April. The old jail was then razed to make way for the new jail's parking lot.

Housing merger

Housing for Scott County residents was also an issue in 2003, with the Scott County and Sikeston housing authorities requesting that the organizations be merged into one unit and the allocation of Section 8 vouchers be reduced.

Bobby K. Henry, executive director of the Sikeston Housing Authority, received word on Jan. 27, 2004, that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved the merger and reduced the vouchers by 10 percent.

Now what was the Scott County Housing Authority will fall under the direction of the Sikeston Housing Authority, not the county commission, though Burger doesn't see that as a problem for county residents.

"The allotment should stay the same," Burger said. "They should still be able to apply for and get the aid."

The housing voucher program is the federal government's major system for assisting low-income families, the elderly and the disabled to afford housing in the private market. A housing subsidy is paid to the participating landlord directly by the Housing Authority on behalf of the family, which then pays the difference between the actual rent charged by the landlord and the amount subsidized by the program.

Clean water

While housing was a concern for some within the county, clean and safe drinking water was also an issue raised by the county commissioners.

At the end of October the Scott County Commission opened discussion on the possibility of creating a countywide water system. Area mayors and superintendents attended a round-table meeting to discuss the benefits of working off a single water system.

"We're still moving forward with plans," said Burger. A quarterly meeting will be held March 4 at Scott County Central High School near Morley, Mo., with county mayors and school superintendents to discuss progress on the project. No public meetings have been scheduled, though Burger said the county signed a generic contract on Feb. 17 to conduct a feasability study.

The goal of the water district would be to get safe water to everyone in the county. Many residents who live outside city limits now rely on personal wells for their water, gathering groundwater that may run through space shared with septic tanks and farm chemicals. Some cities are relying on costly old water facilities.

So far, no county funds have been spent on water issues, but commissioners are hoping to set up a committee that will take input from the community and create a system based on the needs of residents.

A bond issue would need to be passed to pay for the project, but county residents would be allowed to choose whether to use the service or continue using their personal wells. Those who hooked up with the water district would pay a monthly fee for use and a hookup charge.

vcook@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 197