GENTRY -- The possibility of moving the Benton County West District Court to Decatur was discussed at a brief meeting following the regular court session on Nov. 5 at the court building in Gentry.
The brief meeting considered the option of relocating the court to the Nichols Farm building in Decatur, located just north of the new Walmart and southeast of the Decatur State Bank building. The move was discussed because the location would be more central for the court, which serves the west side of the county, and because the new location would have more space for court sessions and offices and for parking. The building was described as a 13,000 square foot building with a large parking lot.
People appearing for court in Gentry often have difficulty finding parking nearby the court building and many have to wait outside because of the limited space inside the building. Though renovation was recently done on the old library building to provide more space for the court clerk's office, court clerk Peggy Burke said space to store case files is still a problem.
Decatur mayor Charles Linam told Judge Jeff Conner and others in attendance that costs for the court would go up about $1,600 per month at the new location. The increase includes rent and a monthly loan payment of $300 or more to pay for renovations the building would need. The increase would be split between the county (which currently pays about 45 percent of the costs of the court) and all the cities using the court, including Gentry, Decatur, Gravette, Sulphur Springs and Highfill.
Judge Conner said his main concern would be security, especially with the recent attempt of an inmate to hire a hit man to kill the judge and Gentry prosecuting attorney Jay Williams. Some entrances would have to be sealed off, he said, so that security officers could monitor those coming in and out of the court building.
Linam said a preliminary estimate of $30,000 for renovations might not be enough to do the work needed. The figure was based on using inmate labor and labor from DARP residents.
Judge Conner recommended that some preliminary drawings and cost estimates be completed and the matter be reconsidered when more details are known.
Gentry mayor Kevin Johnston said he did not favor moving the court to Decatur and asked about the needs of the court and ways to relieve congestion at the court building. He asked if adding additional court days or staggering times might solve the problem. He also met further with the judge to discuss security issues at the current facilities in Gentry.
Also discussed was leaving the court's annual budget the same as last year -- $197,000, with the county paying $88,000 -- but Conner said he wished to give the court's other employees a 3 percent cost of living raise but thought that could be done without increasing the overall budget.
Others in attendance at the meeting were Brenda Gunther and Mike Crandall from Benton County, Tracy Sewell from Gravette and Kim Wilkins of Decatur.
General News on 11/12/2014