Does the Historic Todd County Courthouse have a future?

Whether the Historic Todd County Courthouse should be preserved has been at the pointy end of a spear for decades. No one can deny that it's the icon of Todd County and a landmark of Long Prairie's skyline of which its builders must have been exceedingly proud. But strong opinions on the cost of maintenance and how to best use the space, or have it demolished, burble up periodically like oil in gulf waters.

More than a hundred years old, the Romanesque Revival building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's one of only a dozen historic courthouses of similar age in Minnesota.

Recognizing its historical and architectural value, Todd County residents have tended to its physical needs even while questioning putting money into a building with an uncertain future. In the not so distant past, the roof was redone. That and the repair of windows have prevented deterioration. But because of accessibility and maintenance issues, the former county offices and the courtroom facility echo with emptiness.

The structure has just recently drawn the attention of the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota (PAM). PAM is a statewide, private, non-profit organization with a nearly 30-year history of advocating for the preservation of Minnesota's historic resources. Their first annual (Anti) Wrecking Ball was held on May 20 at the Soap Factory in Minneapolis. It was announced, that evening, with members of the Todd County Historical Society in attendance, that the Todd County Courthouse has been named to the 10 Most Endangered Historic Places List.

The Todd County commissioners have taken the high road and enlisted professionals to determine the preservation worthiness of the building, which was built in 1883. In July 2009, they put out a "Request for Proposals (RFP) on Project Management on a potential Todd County facilities project. The focus of this project is to understand the potential costs and benefits of redesigning and renovating the Todd County Historic Courthouse."

While the Historic Courthouse was the focus of the RFP, the entire complex of the county seat was to be studied. An addendum two weeks after issuing the RFP further clarified the study. "The priority of this project is to help voters and Commissioners understand the feasibility and opportunity costs and benefits of renovating the Historic Courthouse. The County expects that to understand the true feasibility of renovation, that other options must be explored as well."

The RFT specified the following directives:

"The selected firm shall prepare a feasibility report that provides at a minimum the following six future facility options that the Todd County Board and Voting Residents can consider when deciding the future direction of the County's Facilities Needs:

#1 Construction of new county government complex at an offsite complex

#2 Removal of historic courthouse structure and replacing it with a modern facility

#3 Rehabilitation of historic courthouse structure

#4 Removal of historic courthouse structure

#5 Do nothing option (no removal, rehabilitation, or construction)

#6 Combination/Miscellaneous (Wild Card)

Each option should include a complete estimate of construction related costs and prediction of future operation and maintenance expenditures. Each option should also be assessed to see if it will meet the County's current and future space usage needs and requirements."

Collaborative Design Group of Minneapolis and Contegrity Construction Management of Little Falls were hired to perform the analysis and usability study. Their report was issued in March of 2010. Photos from the study and resultant design plans can be seen on the county's website. www.co.todd.mn.us. Under "News," scroll down to the 12th article titled "Historic Courthouse Presentation Documents." Blueprints indicate a use plan for the Historic Courthouse. It would be remodeled for "tax and land services / administration."

While the RFP called for a feasibility report on a minimum of six "future facility options," Collaborative Design Group appears to have zeroed in on option #3 as listed above. That, or those specific plans are the ones that can be seen on the county's website. The report includes: four pages of photos of the existing Historic Courthouse, six pages of a combination of photos and existing floor plans, one page of lists of county departments, two pages of existing site plan and building plan, and four pages of proposed plans which appear to be of just the Historic Courthouse building (the plans are not labeled by floor level). No cost estimates appear on the site report.

"They reported that the structure is good and useable," said County Administrator Nathan Burkett. "In May they reported that they estimated it would cost $4.1 million to renovate the building."

While the RFP hinted that the voters of Todd County would make the ultimate decision as to the future of the Historic Courthouse, that is yet to be determined.

"We are currently working on a presentation to provide three to four public meetings throughout the county so the public can see the plans," said Burkett on May 28. As to whether the decision would be left to voters, "All I know at this time is that ultimately the board has stated the intention is to have the people decide whether or not to save it," he said.

What's your opinion of the plans as presented on the county's website? Weigh in since blogs are for sharing opinions.

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