IOWA CITY

Seven of 26 Johnson County-owned buildings were rated in very poor condition and in need of replacement, according to a county-wide facilities assessment study conducted by Faithful+Gould, a global management consultant firm.

The Johnson County Board of Supervisors were given the assessment results at its April 12 work session and quickly initiated plans to convene a capital planning committee that would meet in the next month.

Consultants from Faithful+Gould estimated current replacement and repairs at $18.1 million with that number rising to $25 million in 10 years.

A county-owned maintenance shed in Lone Tree is among the seven buildings receiving the lowest rating.

Also on that list is the building housing the Sheriff’s Department and county jail. Sheriff Brad Kunkel said the building on South Capitol Street in Iowa City was constructed 42 years ago for a staff that has doubled in size to nearly 100.

“We have to think big picture,” Kunkel told the Board. “That 35,000 in rural Johnson County will continue to grow. How do we accommodate those demands, those needs, those towns growing, and we can’t keep doing it out of this building.”

Of the 26 assessed buildings, 11 were rated in good condition. Another six were rated in poor condition and two in fair condition. A county shed in Frytown was rated in poor condition.

Replacement of the Sheriff’s complex was estimated at $4.5 million while replacement of the Lone Tree shed would be $314,000.

The County Courthouse is in the midst of a renovation that is costing millions of dollars.

The Board agreed on forming a committee consisting of Dave Curtis, Facilities Manager, along with a project systems analyst and representatives from the county’s finance, special projects, attorney, and Planning, Development and Sustainability (PDS) departments.

“We need to be thinking about, what’s the long-term plan?” said Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz.

FY24 Budget

A public hearing on the proposed Fiscal Year 2024 Budget will be held Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

The budget calls for $146.8 million in expenditures, or $163.8 million including operating transfers. The new budget year begins July 1, but the budget must be finalized and approved by April 30, per state code.

Property taxes are expected to top $65 million in FY24.

For more information, or to view the proposed budget, go to: johnsoncountyiowa.gov.

Board Action

The Board awarded All American Concrete of West Liberty with a contract of $484,846 for work on the healing trail at the Johnson County Historic Poor Farm.

The Board issued a proclamation in honor of Fair Housing Month.

Next board meeting: The board will hold its next formal meeting at 9 a.m. April 20.