Schuylkill to update courthouse window blinds

Last month, the Schuylkill County Commissioners announced plans to add air-conditioning to a historic courtroom; this week the board announced plans to change courtroom features more accurately described as, well, antiquated — the window blinds.

Long, narrow vertical blinds are the window dressings in all courtrooms, hearing rooms, judges’ chambers and hallways on the second and third floors of the courthouse. Bids will be received in the controller’s office until 3 p.m. March 4, publicly opened March 6 and tentatively awarded March 13.

In other action, during their workshop meeting Wednesday, the commissioners approve a renewal of the lease agreement with the Pottsville Parking Authority for the lease of 96 parking spaces at the Capital Parking Garage at $33 per space, per month. Also, 14 parking spaces along the 200 block of Laurel Boulevard will be leased at the rate of $22 per month. The parking spaces are for employees of the Human Services and Children & Youth departments. Human Services Director Sharon Love said the rates are from Jan. 1, 2019, through Dec. 31, 2019, and include a “very slight” increase.

The commissioners also approved an inmate housing agreement with Northumberland County. When needed to relieve overcrowding, inmates from the Schuylkill County Prison will be housed at the Northumberland facility at a rate of $65 a day during 2019, $66 per day during 2020 and $67 per day during 2021. The county has been housing inmates out of the county since May 2016, when the state Department of Corrections ordered it to keep the county prison population below a cap of 277 inmates. The cost for the outsourcing of inmates during 2018 was $1,515,210. The county had budgeted $1.4 million to cover the expense.

During the workshop meeting, Commissioner Gary Hess said that the county can “not continue the way we’re going.”

“We need a goal and a plan to address our needs,” Hess said. “And a time frame to come to an agreement.”

After the meeting, Chairman George Halcovage described discussions about the solution to the county prison overcrowding issue are “an active discussion.”

“We’re constantly looking at possibly solutions; it’s a daily discussion,” Halcovage said. “There are options and we’re considering all the options.”