Show barn roof repairs approved, HVAC tabled
By Donnie A. Lucas
Shackelford County Commissioners approved a lease for three vehicles for the sheriff’s department, discussed a proposal to replace the air conditioning in the Courthouse, and okayed repairs to the roof at the county show barn during a regular meeting Monday, June 12.
Sheriff Ed Miller presented two proposals to lease three 2023 Chevy 2500 pickup trucks to be used by deputies on patrol. After discussing options from two dealerships, commissioner Cody Jordan moved to accept the American National Leasing proposal from Herb Easley Chevrolet in Wichita Falls at a cost of $58,131 per year for the three-year term. The county would have the option of purchasing the vehicles at the end of the term for $10,000 each. The motion carried.
The county currently is at the end of a three-year lease of two 2020 half-ton Chevy trucks at a cost of about $30,000 per year.
“I’m recommending the Herb Easley proposal because the other bid from Hanner Cheverolet was not a locked-in price,” Miller said. “Easley has the trucks in stock and guaranteed the price for 90 days. I would like to deal closer to home, but Hanner would have to order the trucks, and they wouldn’t commit to a price until the trucks, were delivered to them.”
It was noted that by leasing the vehicles, warranty is extended during the 36 months without regard to mileage.
The previous lease agreement on two vehicles ended in May. Those two trucks will be used to trade in on the new agreement.
Miller said the first payment will not be due until 2024 and would be part of the next budget.
He also said that the third truck would replace a 2016 truck that the county owns that would be a spare.
The sheriffs department is also awaiting delivery on a new Tahoe that is undergoing after-market rigging of electronics and other police equipment. That vehicle is being paid for with American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
Mike Parsons and Bronco Askew attended Monday’s meeting to report on improvements at the county-owned show barn being headed by the Shackelford Country Youth and Livestock Show board.
Parsons said that the concrete floor has been poured throughout the original portion of the barn.
He requested that the county agree to repair the metal roof, offering two bids to either seal or replace all the screws attaching the metal sheet. The roof has been leaking for some time due to the deterioration of the rubber seals on each screw.
He noted that repairing the roof needed to be completed before other repairs could continue. The next step is to apply spray foam insulation, and the leaks need to be fixed first.
Parsons said that he understood that the county set aside insurance money for damage at the show barn after a hail storm several years ago.
He thought the amount the county received was about $22,000; however, treasurer Tammy Brown was at a conference, and the exact amount could not be verified.
Commissioner Lanham Martin moved to pay $15,747 for replacing all the screws with new rubber gaskets and also covering over damaged skylights with metal sheeting. The motion passed. The motion also included applying any of the remaining insurance money that is being held by the county for the show barn to help cover the cost.
HVAC Discussion
Representatives of Cary Services presented proposals for replacing the 23-year-old air conditioning chiller and 21 individual fan coil units.
The bid for a 40-ton Carrier chiller was $89,865 and $113,344 for the fan coil units that are located in each office. The only equipment not being replaced are the two large air handlers that service the courtroom.
The current chiller is a 50-ton Trane unit, but J.T. Cary told the court that a 40-ton unit is sufficient to handle the load. They also submitted a price of $98,383 for a Carrier 50-ton unit.
“We are looking at a 14-18 week wait time for delivery,” Cary said. “The life span of this equipment is 20 to 25 years, and you got 23 years, which is pretty good.”
He added that the old chiller also uses R-22 freon which can’t be used anymore due to environment regulations. There will also be separate programmable thermostats on each fan coil which should result in a cost savings.
County judge John Viertel passed out a spreadsheet indicating that the county has $339,000 in unspent ARPA funds, with $59,000 allocated for the sheriff’s department Tahoe and $39,000 for the fiber optics line that is being installed.
He said that HVAC repairs would qualify under the ARPA program, and added that he was unsure what would happen to any unallocated funds due to a possible “claw back” by federal government.
The commissioners opted to table the matter on a motion by Jordan pending advice on what size chiller to purchase and to verify if the expense was eligible for ARPA funds.
Burn Ban
and Fireworks
The commissioner opted to take no action to reinstate the burn ban at this time.
However, an order restricting fireworks in the county was passed on a motion by Jordan.
The order outlaws the use of bottle rockets or skyrockets with sticks, and missile-type fireworks with fins.
Other Business
•Approval was given to Mary Kay O’Connor to raise funds to have an additional monument placed next to the current Veterans Memorial monuments on the courthouse square. She said there is room for only six more names on the present monument. The additional granite stone that matches the existing ones will cost $4,130 including installation. The motion to approve was made by Jordan and passed unanimously.
•The court agreed to have an attorney send a letter to WesTex Connect about equipment that may or may not be in use on the county-owned tower on One-Mile Hill. Martin made the motion to have an attorney contact the company since any lease has long expired and they currently are not paying any lease payments.
Viertel said that several attempts including certified mail have been made to contact the company with no response.
•Jordan moved to allow the purchase of a tree saw attachment for a skid steer by Precinct 2 commissioner Ace Reames for $6,000. The tool would be made available to all four precincts.
