Courthouse Upgrades Get A Look

Weed season is back, well, almost. The cold and wind has prevented spraying, according to Rick Wangler, the Kimball County Weed Superintendent. He explained to the Kimball County Board of Commissioners that he is currently doing inspections and working on the equipment. 

The county business continued with a presentation by Jacob Hurla, President of Community Building Solutions. Previously, Hurla toured the Courthouse and explained that Community Building Solutions is a small project management company created to provided rural schools, counties and other public entities with high quality and low cost turnkey energy related facility improvements.

Hurla's company primarily work on upgrading existing buildings in areas such as LED lighting, HVAC Controls, HVAC Equipment, windows, and roofing. Their references locally include Garden County Courthouse, Kimball Public Schools, and Creek Valley Schools. These are projects they have completed or are currently working on.

Their approach is to seek the best value for their customers using their expertise which includes cost-effective, community-focused, and creative solutions.

Hurla said they are a “soup to nuts company” that holds contracts and are basically the project managers. Usually, their approach includes LED lighting which creates a big savings, but the Kimball County Courthouse had already upgraded to LED lighting.

So Hurla said their focus is on upgrading the outdated 1989 boiler and 2000 chiller, along with replacing the ineffective 45-year-old windows and the failing seals, worn weatherstripping in entryways. Another area of need is the cramped/overcrowding in the Clerk's office and adjoining spaces are inefficiently used.

After the presentation, the next step, Hurla said, is for Community Building Solutions to Review Preliminary Engineering Analysis with the Commissioners in the next month or two.

The Nebraska Legislature enabled this unique construction approach when they passed Revised Statutes Chapter 66 Statutes 1062-1066. The county does not have to bid on the projects but must issue a Request for Qualifications according to the law.

In other business, UNL Extension Educator Nathan Rice introduced Jennifer Coleman as the new office manager and 4-H Aide. The Colemans moved here six years ago, and they have three children.

After the introduction, the board appointed Laura Nelson as the Kimball County representative on the UNL Kimball/Banner/Cheyenne Counties Extension Board. 

Finally, Rice presented the 2021 Annual UNL Extension Board to the board.

Zoning Administrator Sheila Newell presented her monthly report highlighting that no new applications were received, but inquiries were made about building permits, variance, minimum lot size, communication towers, and wind turbine decommissioning.

WAPA Environmental Assessment for the Orion Wind Resources for Banner/Kimball County comment period ends on May 7. Information can be found atwww.wapa.gov/transmission/interconnection/pages/Banner-County-Wind.aspx.

Another public comment period ended for the South Platte Natural Resource District Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan. The completed plan will be submitted to the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency. Upon approval, “Kimball County is eligible for FEMA project grant funding to assist with implementation of actions in this plan.”

The next Kimball County Commissioners meeting is May 3.