The marble on the front of the Orange County Courthouse is still being stabilized by scaffolding, but the Commissioners Court is investigating means of getting it repaired permanently. Susan Gammage with the Historical Commission discussed its program and benefits during a special session of the Court Monday.
Commissioner Barry Burton says the reason for the presentation is to see if the Historical Commission could help pay for renovations and repairs to the Courthouse. Burton was encouraged to hear that the Historical Commission has funds available to pay for up to 85 percent of the cost with a cap of $6 million for renovations to the Courthouse. He added that the commission also has emergency grants of up to $450,000 to handle immediate needs. The county could put in for a twofold application to cover renovations and restoration as well as the emergency fund to fix the marble. The only bad news Commissioner Burton pointed out is that Orange County only has until December 11 to get the applications in to the Historical Commission.
Although the deadline is tight to get the applications complete, the county does have some local counties that have gone through the process and could provide advice on Orange County’s application according to Burton. Gammage mentioned in her presentation that Jefferson County is going through a similar process as is Orange County. Newton County has been awarded a Historical Commission grant for the complete rebuild of its courthouse following a devastating fire. Burton believes Orange County could go to these two counties to see how they put their applications together and how to move forward.
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