How to clean the courthouse was a primary focus of the Warren County Commissioner’s Monday work session.

The commissioner’s decision boiled down to this – expand an existing contract with Bollinger Enterprises or hire a part-time maintenance person who would be tasked with managing Warren County Jail inmate labor.

Commissioner Ben Kafferlin said staffing issues at the jail prohibit jail staff from providing such supervision.

Chief Clerk Pam Matve noted an amendment to the BEI contract would cost $12,500 and a part-time position would cost about $13,000 annually.

Kafferlin spoke in favor of the part-time position while Commissioner Jeff Eggleston argued for the BEI contract amendment.

Eggleston noted it has “gotten difficult to get and maintain part-timers” and noted that BEI has been “fairly responsive” regarding the cleaning services they already provide at the courthouse. He said this would also take the cleaning issue “off the plate” of the jail entirely.

He said there have been “a lot of consistency issues” with utilizing inmates and said “the conversation should be more about… what dedicated service functions can we have them engaged in that don’t affect the quality of the courthouse.”

He also spoke about the importance of the appearance of the courthouse and said he wants it “presentable for the public when they come here.”

In addition to ultimately agreeing to the BEI option – which will be before the commissioners on Thursday for formal action – the commissioners elected to continue to let county staff and inmates handle snow removal while contracting out most of the lawn care functions, an agreement that will also go before the commissioners on Thursday.

The remainder of Monday’s meeting was spent discussing sidewalk issues as well as records retention.

The top item on Thursday’s agenda is the 2020 budget.

Kafferlin noted that there have been minor changes largely the “implications of salary board” that will be presented to the board on Wednesday prior to the vote. He noted they are “within the threshold of what the law allows us to change before (we) vote.”