Pulaski County Council Approves Jail Equipment Purchase

Pulaski County Justice Center
Pulaski County Justice Center

Pulaski County Maintenance Director Jeff Johnston brought the county council up to speed on the justice center equipment repairs and replacement.

He explained that the water heater replacement is already underway due to a directive from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

“Right now they’ve got one water heater doing the work of two and it’s on its last leg,” said Johnston. “They’re halfway through the installation process for the new system. The total cost for the water heaters is $65,790. That includes the system and all new piping. As we were taking the insulation off the large copper pipes up there, there were leaks and cracks throughout.”

Johnston also had several other equipment purchases to come before the council.

“We recently replaced four of the 11 HVAC units on the roof. The other seven are on this list. The ones that are up there have varying problems. With the approval to upgrade all of this equipment, our maintenance cost to upkeep these things for the next 15-20 years will be minimal.”

The water heaters, two water softeners and 11 HVAC units came to a total of $185,147.20 which is to come out of the jail’s CAGIT fund.

The county council members approved the transfer by a 4-3 vote. Jay Sullivan, Alex Haschel, Roger Querry and Mick Tiede voted for the transfer while Tom Roth, Ron Powers and Doug Roth voted against the motion.