SHAWANO, WI- Shawano County has earmarked its remaining $1.5 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds with five months to spare before the December 31 deadline. These funds, provided through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), will be directed towards a significant project at the county jail, as decided by the Shawano County Executive Committee on July 17.
The jail project, which has seen its estimated costs soar by more than 350% from the original estimate, will utilize the remaining ARPA funds.
It was recommended to use the remaining ARPA funds for the project, which aims to replace the controls and building automation system for the jail and sheriff’s department heating, ventilation, and air conditioning units.
The current estimate stands at $1,855,000, which includes a contingency amount.
While deciding to allocate the remaining ARPA funds to the jail project, other proposed projects were discussed. New court equipment will be added to the clerk of courts budget request for 2025, and a new dive team trailer for the sheriff’s department is part of the 2025 budget request. The installation of antennas at the Leopolis communication tower was completed with funds from the 2024 budget.
The estimate for the parks remodeling project, which includes moving Parks Director Keith Marquardt out of the house and building office space above the pavilion, is still pending. The overall plan is to convert the house into a vacation rental property (Vrbo).
The library board will discuss using its $85,000 fund balance to pay for a new metal roof estimated at $81,000, although they initially favored a $60,000 asphalt roof. The cost to retain wood log siding at Lakeland Industries is about $60,000, while replacing it with a different siding would be around $300,000.
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