Improvements are in the works for several properties owned by Orange County. The projects include refurbishing parking lots, repairs to the Courthouse, and cleanup at the airport.
The Commissioners Court approved Tuesday Kurt Guidry and the Maintenance Department to purchase a Newstripe self-propelled airless paint striper. The cost will be $3,439.69 for the machine. Guidry said there are 22 parking lots with stripes owned by the county. He hopes to have the striping machine in about two weeks and will purchase about three thousand dollars in yellow paint to do all the striping.
Workers can now be seen on the scaffolding in front of the Orange County Courthouse restoring the marble façade. Commissioner Theresa Beauchamp informed that the front of the building has been pressure washed and looks much cleaner.
The Commissioners approved improvements to the entrance road and the public parking areas at the Orange County Airport. Work will be performed by the county’s Road and Bridge Department. Any expense incurred will be covered 50/50 with the Routine Airport Maintenance Program or RAMP grant from the state.
A new piece of equipment has been approved to help clear debris from the runway and taxiway at the county airport. The FOD*BOSS is a special purchase of $6,398 for the county to sweep debris and items from the paved areas used by the aircraft.
The Commissioners discussed the list of county buildings for the National Flood Insurance Program. The original list submitted included the WICK Building and the Sheriff’s Substation in Vidor both of which flooded during Harvey.
The WICK building is still used for storage and the substation currently is not used at all. The Court approved removing those two buildings from the list of buildings to be insured and added the Forensic, Purchasing, and Maintenance Building in Orange. The building in Orange is still needing an elevation certificate.
Option One of the selection coverage was approved. It will increase the coverage on the buildings by ten percent and increase the coverage on the contents of the buildings by five percent.
The week of May 20 through May 24, 2019 was recognized as Flood Awareness Week with a proclamation by the Commissioners Court. County Judge Carl Thibodeaux pointed out the proclamation was timely with the flooding occurring this week in the county. Thibodeaux stated the combination of water being released from Toledo Bend dam and the influx of strong winds from the south has caused the water to backup on the Sabine River causing some street flooding in eastern Orange County.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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