JC Quorum Court Celebrates Completion Of Projects
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by Janice Penix
The Johnson County Quorum Court celebrated the completion of two capital projects during its monthly meeting Thursday, June 11.
The renovation and expansion of the Johnson County District Court was completed last month, with the courtroom subsequently moving back to Porter Industrial Road. Court staff offices have also been relocated from a leased space on Rogers Street to the newly refurbished space.
During the construction, the court had to be moved to a temporary location for several months.
Rusty Hardgrave, county assessor, was instrumental in assisting District Judge Sarah Capp and her staff with finding an appropriate site and moving the court both out of the old facility and back into the new site.
At Thursday’s meeting, Hardgrave expressed appreciation to the Christian Life Center church and Pastor Justin Ferguson, for allowing the county to use its facility on Poplar Street in Clarksville for the court’s temporary location.
“When we started the district court project, we had to find a building,” Hardgrave said, noting he and other county administrators considered numerous options without finding a suitable space. “By pure miracle, Justin shows up one day and said, ‘We want to help the community,’ and offered their building to us. It made a great place to hold our court. If it hadn’t been for him, we’d have been in trouble.”
Miranda Reardon, district court representative, expressed appreciation on behalf of Capp and the court staff for the commitment of the Quorum Court and county leaders in providing a more adequate, safer building for the court.
“We are grateful for your investment in our community,” Reardon said.
Ferguson was presented a proclamation of appreciation from the county during the meeting.
The district court project was funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars the county received during the COVID pandemic. The county received $4,836,754.86 in ARPA funds, and the Court allocated approximately $3,039,000 for the district court project. As of Thursday’s meeting, $2,665,864.73 had been expended, with the project substantially complete.
County Judge Herman Houston said any funds remaining will be used to pave the parking area at the district court/sheriff’s office complex, which he said is in dire need of new surfacing.
New Radio Towers
Justices of the peace also heard a report from Nick Weller of KA-Comm Inc., the contractor for the new radio towers.
Weller said the towers are 95% operational, stating law enforcement radios are already utilizing the new system, with the fire department radios to come online shortly, pending final programming.
“There are a few things we are going to go through with a fine-tooth comb, but they are 95% done,” Weller said. “Everything we are doing now is just little features, but they have been up and operational since last week.”
New emergency communication towers were installed in the Oark and Hartman areas, which previously had no radio service for emergency personnel. The project was also funded with ARPA money.
Justice of the Peace John Payne expressed appreciation to Klay Rowbotham, deputy director of emergency management, who has been the county’s lead contact for the project.
Weller echoed Payne’s comments, adding both Rowbotham and Rickey Casey, director of emergency management, had been “excellent to work with.”
“It has been very beneficial working with Klay,” Weller said. “Klay designed the back-haul network himself, which saved you a lot of money. That was an extra $200,000 probably taken off the top because he was able to do that. It’s been a dream working with the county.”
The Court allocated $600,000 in ARPA funds for the communications towers, and as of Thursday’s meeting, $473,609.34 had been spent.
Other Matters
–The Court agreed to reschedule its August meeting from Aug. 13 to Aug. 6 due to a conflict with the Association of Arkansas Counties conference.
–David Hatchett of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a nonprofit organization that provides beds for youth in Johnson County, introduced himself to the Court and provided information about resources the organization offers.
Justices of the peace in attendance included Ray Hobbs, Paula Ober, Van Hill, Bethany Bean, Mike Estes, John Payne, Kris Muldoon, Katie Howard, Larry Jones and Pete Petersen, while Bryan Cooper was absent.
Read this story and others in the June 17 issue of The Graphic, available online and at businesses throughout Franklin and Johnson counties. Subscribe or donate here to support more hometown journalism.
Christian Life Center church in Clarksville was presented a proclamation of appreciation from the Johnson County Quorum Court for donating its facility for the temporary location of the Johnson County District Court. Attending the presentation were (front row, from left) Justin Ferguson, Christian Life Center pastor; Denisse Delgado of district court; Herman Houston, county judge; Rusty Hardgrave, county assessor; and (back row) Miranda Reardon, Andrea Ward and Nikki Stone, all of district court.
–Graphic photo by Janice Penix
