A contract for equipment shelters for the new Washington County emergency radio project has been approved. At Tuesday’s Washington County Board of Supervisors meeting, a bid from Cellsite Solutions LLC of Cedar Rapids was accepted for $245,535. The shelters will be refurbished with new roofs, electrical, and HVAC. They will be placed at the base of the towers.

Supervisor Jack Seward says things are progressing, but there has been a delay in putting the towers out to bid, “We have some hold ups with a couple of towers. I believe the end of the month, the end of this month should be the end of the comment period for the Federal Aviation Administration on our tower at Orchard Hill that we’ll build. Also, the State Historic Preservation Office is still apparently working on our appeal for their denial of our ability to build that tower at Orchard Hill because of the impact on the viewscape of the historic Washington County poor farm, so we’re still waiting on that.” He says he expects the tower to be allowed.

They’re also evaluating the best options for a tower in the Kalona area, whether to reinforce an existing structure or to build a new one. The total cost of the project for the emergency communications equipment and building is $11.3 million.