Commissioners no closer to handicapped accessible ramp for administration building

After weeks of receiving zero bids for a handicapped accessible ramp to the county administration building, the Highland County Board of Commissioners received two bids in the past two weeks – one from WAI Contractors in Portsmouth and another from Brad Roades, owner of Landscapes and Outer Spaces in Hillsboro.

Roades’ bid of $76,620 was opened at the Wednesday, Aug. 10 commissioners’ meeting. The WAI bid – which was considerably higher – was open at the previous board meeting.

“I think we need to sit down with DS2 (architects),” Commissioner Tom Horst said. “This bid (Roades’) is $30,000 under last week’s bid, but still higher than what DS2 estimated.”

Currently, the county administration building only has handicapped accessibility from the alley on the west side of the building. However, the county does not have handicapped parking near the rear entrance in the alley.

Neither bid was accepted at Wednesday’s meeting.

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In other business, Highland County Women’s Hall of Fame committee members Sue Smith (co-chair) and Debbie Rhude met with commissioners regarding the 2016 Women’s Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.

The Highland County Women’s Hall of Fame committee has announced that five local women have been selected for induction into the hall of fame this year: Marilyn Morris Anders, Highland County Prosecutor Anneka P. Collins, Gayle Coss, Paige Juillerat and Mary Ann Sommers Larkin.

The ceremony will be held Aug. 16 in the atrium of Southern State Community College’s central campus in Hillsboro. Dinner will be held at 6 p.m. Tickets are $16 and may be purchased at in Community Savings Bank in Greenfield and Southern Hills Community Bank in Leesburg and Lynchburg.

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• Prior to the board meeting, Commissioner Jeff Duncan attended the Highland Soil and Water Conservation District board meeting and proposed that that board oversee the county’s recycling coordinator position. Duncan said the SWCD board would discuss the proposal and report back.

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• Commission President Shane Wilkin briefly discussed funding a local Land Bank and said that issue would be on the agenda for the Aug. 17 board meeting.

Wilkin also shared that state and local funds totaling $915,000 have been made available for Corvac Composites in Greenfield. A portion of those funds is coming from loan payments by C-Mold in Greenfield, Wilkin said.

“In 2010, we did (funded) C-Mold and $480,000 or $490,000 has been repaid with interest. Part of that will go to Corvac,” Wilkin said.

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Commissioners also agreed to a new lease agreement for the Family Advocacy Center on Crestview Drive.