Courthouse elevator overhaul continues

May 18, 2008 09:24 pm

— By Susan Redden
sredden@joplinglobe.com
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Going up?
Perhaps in about two weeks and $30,000.
Those are expected to be the “worst-case” estimates in terms of time and money for getting the elevator in the historic Carthage courthouse back in working order, according to Darieus Adams, Western District county commissioner.
Courthouse users have been climbing the stairs for a few weeks, after workers determined that the emergency braking system needed to be replaced.
“And since the elevator is so old, the parts have to be custom-made,” Adams said.
The project also required a deeper pit to accommodate the new braking system. Crews with the county road department used a jackhammer to dig out the base under the elevator.
The repairs are being done by Kone Elevator, of Springfield.
A telephone has been installed in the courthouse basement near the elevator to accommodate residents in wheelchairs and others who cannot climb the stairs. They can use the telephone to call the office they need to visit, and a worker will go to them, Adams said.
“Everyone has been good to do that,” he said.
Most of the court cases in the Carthage courthouse are held on the third floor, so some of those activities have been rescheduled or moved to the courts building in Joplin.
It’s not the first time repairs have been needed on the elevator, which was installed about 20 years after the courthouse was finished in 1895. After hiring an elevator consultant, the county limited work to minor repairs about four years ago after the commissioners won an appeal before the Missouri Elevator Safety Board. State inspectors had ordered repairs that were to cost about $45,000. Many of the changes, county officials said, applied to modern, self-service elevators. The wrought-iron cage elevator is operated by a county worker.
Officials also argued against changes they feared would take away from the historic ambience of the courthouse.

State pact

As part of an agreement with the state four years ago, the county posted a placard listing the elevator’s allowed weight, date of construction and other information. Another sign was posted to bar the public from the uppermost area of the courthouse, which already was restricted to county workers.