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LISBON -- Columbiana County Commissioner Mike Halleck said they have begun having informal discussions among themselves about fully reopening the county courthouse and other county government buildings after seven weeks of being in a partial shutdown and limited hours.
County buildings close at 1 p.m., staffs are being rotated and public access has been limited since mid-March because of the COVID-19 virus, but Gov. Mike DeWine on Monday took action to slowly begin reopening the state starting May 1.
Halleck said it his understanding the judges want to resume having court in person on May 18, but he would like the reopening be a coordinated effort and avoid what occurred before, when most officeholders made decisions independent of the other.
"We'd like to get all of the officeholders on the same page if we can," he said.
When county buildings do reopen completely, Halleck said they will likely continue following certain guidelines, such as having the sheriff's deputy assigned to the security checkpoint continue taking the temperature of anyone who enters the courthouse, and visitors who intend to go into an office may be required to wear a mask. He said these are all things they need to decide in conjunction with other officeholders.
"We were one of the first counties to be proactive in a responsible way but we need to get back to business," he said.
In other business, Halleck said he believes county government will emerge from the crisis in pretty good financial shape but it is too soon to tell. At some point he would like to proceed with two priority capital improvement projects: construction of a building to house county records and renovations to the misdemeanor wing of the county jail.
Both projects have been put on hold because of the financial uncertainty created by the government response to the virus. The records building would be constructed on the site in downtown Lisbon where the county elections board once stood before the new facility was opened about five years ago.
Commissioners approved letting deputy Lt. Allan Young officially take possession of his partner, Jesy, the sheriff's department K9 officer for the past eight years. Young has been Jesy's handler from the beginning and he is scheduled to retire this month, and Jesy is retiring with him. For Young to officially take ownership of Jesy, he needed to pay the county the nominal fee of $1.
tgiambroni@mojonews.com