The Cole County Commission on Tuesday awarded a contract to Air Systems of Columbia to replace the heating/cooling system at the Prenger Family Center.
Air Systems was the low bidder at $418,628. Of the three bidders, the next lowest was about $650,000.
Commissioners questioned the bid, since the county had only earmarked $220,000 for the project in its long-range plan.
Eastern District Commissioner Jeff Hoelscher questioned whether maintenance could continue to keep it operational for a few more years, if needed. But he and the other commissioners eventually agreed it makes sense to fix it now.
"We've been putting Band-Aids on it for the seven years I've been here," Hoelscher said.
Commissioners expressed concern, if the system were to fail, the county would have to shuffle the children possibly to a nearby county until it could be fixed.
Presiding Commissioner Sam Bushman said it is the original system installed when the building was dedicated in 1994. "So we've got our money's worth out of it," he said after the meeting.
Also at the meeting, Hoelscher clarified the county wasn't responsible for a private developer's removal of a pioneer-era cemetery near Apache Flats.
The county prosecutor is seeking charges against a developer for building a roundabout near Pioneer Trail Elementary School over the cemetery.
Ed Meyer, chairman of the city's Historic Preservation Commission, said in a Tuesday News Tribune story "what the county allowed was a travesty."
"The county didn't have anything to do with it," Hoelscher said. "I was just kind of offended."
In other action, the commission:
• Signed an engagement letter with Williams-Keepers for the county's required 2014 audit. The company's base bid was $44,000.
• Signed a grant application for replacement of 20 bulletproof vests for the Sheriff's Department. If approved, the Department of Justice and the Sheriff's Department would split the $11,600 cost. The vests are replaced every five years.
• Made a budget adjustment related to a MUSTANG drug task force grant. This allows the county to collect and distribute $107,000 to various MUSTANG entities that are being reimbursed through a federal grant.
• Made a part-time nurse position into a full-time position now that the person holding the position is retiring.
• Approved a request from Circuit Clerk Dawnel Davidson for an additional $1,000 to fund required public notice advertisements in the News Tribune. She said the expense cost the county $25,000 last year, and she's already spent $21,000 this year.