We can’t think of many who would argue that Warren County didn’t need a bond issue to pay for new radio towers.

No one wants to have communications among first responders in a critical situation stop because it’s raining – which can happen with the old towers with copper wire. We’ve known for a while that the three radio towers the county plans to replace were going to have to be paid for with a bond issue at some point. That time is now.

The $5.2 million emergency radio tower upgrade will include installation of three new towers – one in Sugar Grove, one in Elk and one in Sheffield. Once the project is completed, Ken Klakamp, commissioner, said the county should be set for a while. The life span is 35 to 50 years. That means the radio towers will have a useful life after the bond act is paid off.

What’s more concerning than the radio tower upgrades is two other projects that are included in the $6.8 million bond issue. The radio towers are expected to cost about $5.2 million. The other $1.6 million will be spent on deferred maintenance that includes the exterior of the Warren County Courthouse, fixing leaks in the roof at the Warren County Jail and purchasing new computer servers. This is the type of work that ideally should be done from the city’s budget, not part of a longer-term bond notice that the county has to pay on overtime. That’s particularly true of computer servers, which while expensive also become obsolete fairly quickly. And, borrowing to pay for deferred building maintenance too often can quickly become a financial headache when the projects pile up because there isn’t any money in the household budget to take care of small issues before they become big issues.

The occasional bond issue doesn’t mean the county is having financial issues. But going to that well too often is a sign that the county budget is out of whack.