Officials are moving forward with their plan to fund extensive repairs to Cass County-owned properties.
Cass County Commissioners announced the plan in August 2014 to carry out repairs on on the government building and jail on Court Park and the county's annex building on High Street. The buildings are in need of new roofs, siding, facades and parking lot upgrades.
The commissioners intend to establish a holding corporation to transfer the ownership of the three properties to with the tax-backed rent for which going toward paying off a bond issue funding the repairs.
Officials used the same plan for the construction of the jail in the 1990s. That bond issue was paid off in 2014.
The commissioners unanimously approved a resolution at their bimonthly meeting Monday, Aug. 15, setting the basic parameters of the initiative. John Hillis, attorney for the commissioners, went over these parameters at the meeting.
Among them were the appointments of Claude Bailey, Jim Donato and Mike Kinsey to the holding corporation's board.
The resolution calls for limits on the proposed lease of 20 years, a maximum of $950,000 annual rent, a principal bond issue of up to $10 million and interest rates of 1.65 to 6 percent.
Hillis went on to say the county fulfilled a petition requirement by receiving 66 signatures of taxpaying Cass County registered voters in support of the project.