A glimpse of the beauty and precision of the work being done on the Historic Green County Courthouse was revealed when scaffolding on the east side of the building was removed a few weeks ago. I guess that means it’s time for an update on the progress of this ongoing renovation project.
The highest parts of the scaffolding remain in place, forming a framework on the southwest corner of the building. This is the area around the clock tower and what is currently the empty space above where the bell and clock will be returned. The walls of this tower were dismantled down to the floor underneath the bell, and those walls will now be rebuilt.
From the Courthouse attic, the level with the bell will again be accessible via hatch door. A new spiral staircase will rise nine feet to the next level, where the clock mechanism will be located. Above that will be a new floor to support the steeple. You may recall that after the building’s original steeple was damaged in a storm and removed, the top of the tower was flat for a number of years — with a spancrete slab installed. When the most current steeple was replaced, it sat on top of this slab.
The new floor to be installed will instead be concrete, to give further stability to the steeple that will once again sit on top of it. A hatch door will give inside access for workers to anchor the steeple in place.
If all goes as planned, the steeple that currently sits on the west side of the Courthouse is set to be put back into place before the end of the year. But there are a number of things that need to happen to make this work. First off, a pump truck will be used to get the concrete up to where it needs to go. The weather needs to cooperate so the concrete doesn’t cure too fast or too slow. And it takes 28 days for concrete to cure completely to be at full strength.
Once the steeple is in place, it will be roofed in slate. Portions of the roof next to the tower are also waiting for their slate shingles. After that, additional copper trim will be cut and shaped to finish off the tower.
Work crews are currently power washing outside walls, which will then be tuck pointed. It’s been a busy week with lots of foot traffic on the scaffolding outside my office windows on the round tower on the northwest corner. As I write, loose bits of mortar are being ground away to prep the area on the north side for repointing.
Upcoming plans include work on the porticos (porches) on both the east and west sides of the building, with this part of the project going out for bid in early 2023. Eventually new sidewalks will be installed on the property. And again, if all goes as planned, by the middle of next year all of the scaffolding should be removed.
At some point in time, I hope the county will host an open house. I hope you’ll have the opportunity to meet some of the people who have masterminded this monumental project — like Dick Marti, who heads up maintenance here at the Historic Green County Courthouse, and Jake Verhagen, the project manager with Renaissance Historic Exteriors. Dick has been my source for this series of articles, because I have zero knowledge of things like how spancrete differs from concrete. I’d personally like to thank Dick and Jake for all the accommodations they made so the Cheese Days festival could be held on the Courthouse property.
— Noreen Rueckert is the director for Green County Tourism, director for Green County Cheese Days, and committee co-chair for Concerts on the Square with Main Street. She can be reached at noreen@tds.net.
