BLOOMFIELD, Mo. - The Stoddard County Commission approved a timetable for mold removal, remediation and restoration at the Justice Building Monday morning during their regular meeting. The commission met with Robert Carmody, project manager with Tetra Tech in Collinsville, Ill., Dale Rogers, an architect with Stearnes and Associates, Inc. and Associate Judge Joe Satterfield to discuss the timetable and the way in which the mold is to be removed and remediated.
It was decided after some discussion to cleanup the outer part of the building which houses the court offices including the circuit clerk and focus on Courtroom C to meet the caseloads of the courts. Satterfield said he believed the judges and court employees could be ready for the project to begin this Friday. He said he would have to talk with Presiding Judge Stephen Sharp about it before he could be sure. He said all the judges just wanted to get the problem fixed and get back to normal as quickly as possible.
Satterfield said some offices been set up in the basement of the Justice Building and an area equipped with recorders to serve as a courtroom on a temporary basis. The basement passed and air and surface mold test administered by Tetra Tech. The juvenile offices have been moved into the old Alternative School and the circuit offices now will temporarily housed in the basement.
Carmody said by focusing on those areas served by one HVAC unit that it would make it easier to complete the task in the nine-day period requested by the commission. He said the remaining courtrooms could be sealed off and work could be performed on them while the court offices remained open.
Satterfield asked if there would be any problems with employees and the public gaining access to the offices once they have passed air and surface testing.
Carmody said there would be plastic barriers installed to seal the remaining courtrooms and a sealed plastic walkway would be erected to allow employees and the public to gain access to the needed areas when the second phase gets underway. He also said anyone trying to access areas where work is underway would have to put on a special "suit" which would also filter the area being breathed.
Carmody opened his remarks by saying his company was working with the other contractors on a timetable. He said he had been working on an attempt to complete the entire job within nine days, but said he could not guarantee it. He said there are a number of things that could happen that could set the project back and require longer.
Schemel-Tarrillion, Inc., an abatement company, has been hired as the contractor for the cleaning and remediation of the mold and Langford Mechanical and Sheet Metal will do the ductwork. Camody said the HVAC unit and duct work connected to Unit 2 in the Justice Building would all have to be removed and replaced. He said the ductwork for Units 1 and 3 will not have to be removed; instead it will be thoroughly cleaned and remediated. Brown Construction of Dexter met with Carmody Monday morning to work out a plan for replacing the ceiling grid, any carpeting that needed replacement and other construction that was needed to after the clean-up.
Carmody said getting everyone together to coordinate their respective jobs was important to finish the project on time. He then asked for input from the commission and Satterfield about the way in which the project was to progress and if there was some prioritization that was needed. That's when Satterfield offered his suggestions about concentrating on the clerk's offices and Court C to get cleaned and opened as quickly as possible. He said many cases were involved and the courtrooms and offices could not be closed indefinitely. He said he was also concerned about the safety of employees and the public.
Presiding Commissioner Greg Mathis asked about the timetable and how soon the project could be started. He said the commission had discussed beginning the work on a Saturday and taking nine days, which would only mean the building would be closed for five working days.
Satterfield said he thought the courts could complete what was needed by the end of Thursday and allow the work to begin on Friday. That would give contractors an extra day.
Commissioner Frank Sifford said, "I like that idea."
There was some discussion about the cost of paying overtime to contractors. Carmody said all work above 40 hours paid to employees would be paid at time and a half.
Rogers said he didn't think there would be a great deal of difference in the cost if they compressed the job to a set number of days or stretched it out over a longer period.
Commission Carol Jarrell agreed that starting on Friday and concentrating on the offices that were needed the most was the best plan. All three commissioners were in agreement. It was left up to Carmody to coordinate the project with all contractors and Satterfield said he would immediately talk with Sharp to make sure the timetable was okay. He said Associate Judge Stephen Mitchell would support whatever plan Satterfield and Sharp agreed was the best.
Mathis said he had been talking with Liberty Township officials about their concerns with an application by Southeast Missouri Stone Company to mine 91 acres east of Dexter. The company is already mining sand and gravel on adjacent property east of Dexter. Mathis said township officials were concerned about damage and upkeep to the paved road and a bridge due to increased traffic. He said the two sides were meeting to try to come to an agreement.
The commissions unanimously approved paying for county employee flu shots. Mathis said the county had paid for these shots the last two years and he just wanted to know if they were going to go it again. The county provides the flu shots through the Stoddard County Health Department. It was approved with little discussion.
Mathis also said the commission is working on updating the Employee Handbook. He said the update had been needed for years. He said the county had previously hired someone to work on the update, but it was never completed.
"That individual has died," Mathis said, "so we are going to looking into it with no specific timeline."
County Clerk Joe Watson reported that there would be only one item on the ballot for the November elections. He said the ballot would be for Dudley residents only. The City of Dudley is seeking to issue $1.2 million in revenue bonds to "extend and improve the combined waterworks and sewerage systems". The bonds are to be paid through revenue generated by those systems. He said there were no other issues that would be on ballots in the county for that election.