HERMANN — With two more months of sales tax revenue to come in, Gasconade County government is less than $5,000 away from the $1 million mark and is in good shape to come close to hitting the estimated $1.2 million that was projected in this year’s operating budget.

County Treasurer Mike Feagan Thursday morning told the County Commission that, based on the past two months’ sales tax receipts, he was looking for a little larger check than the $98,548 that was received for revenue generated from sales made in September.

“I was a little disappointed, yet it was the biggest of any (October) I’ve tracked,” Feagan said.

Indeed, it was larger than last October’s reimbursement of $96,148, which was part of the county’s second record year for General Fund sales tax receipts. This month’s check pushed the county’s receipts for 2022 to $72,748 ahead of the amount received by this time last year. The county so far this year has received $995,282.

County Clerk Lesa Lietzow noted that the county is in good shape to reach the $1.2 million projected when this year’s budget was being crafted. That would put the county well ahead of last year’s record amount of $1,122,323.

Regarding the other closely watched revenue source — the 1.325-cent use tax that’s applied to purchases made from out-of-state vendors — the county should easily top $200,000 for the first full year of the tax being in place. Feagan reported that this month’s use-tax check is for $11,123, about half of the amount received in September. For the year, the county has received $196,136 from the use tax.

In other matters, the Commission agreed it would go to Small Claims Court in an effort to collect about $200 from the property owner whose fence recently was removed from the right-of-way along Price Road outside Owensville. The charge results from the removal of the fence by county Road Department workers after the property owners failed to take down the fence.

County administrators learned that installing an elevator at the courthouse will not be an inexpensive project. Bill Quick, representing an elevator company in St. Louis, will be providing county government with cost estimates for an elevator likely for inside the building. Commissioners had hoped to have a lift installed on the outside of the building, but Quick explained that an outside elevator would carry a much heftier price tag.

“I would say probably 60 to 70 percent higher than if you did it inside,” he said.

County administrators are concerned that having an elevator inside the building would further squeeze available space.

“We can’t afford to lose space,” noted Southern District Associate Commissioner Jerry Lairmore, R-Owensville.

Quick said the elevator company would be working with local contractors who would actually build the device. He said he could involve outside contractors familiar with elevator construction, but that would only increase the cost. He suggested the county hire an architect to produce a firm construction cost estimate.

“I can get (cost) numbers together for you” for his end of the project, Quick said.

Northern District Associate Commissioner Jim Holland, R-Hermann, said he’s eager to see what those numbers might be. “We might not be able to afford it,” he said. But, he added, “I’m certainly optimistic” about the potential cost.

The plan is for the county to use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars to finance the elevator. The installation of an elevator was a priority item suggested by courthouse employees in recent months in response to the Commission’s request for ideas on how to use the ARPA money. The county has a little over $2 million yet to use from its $2.8-million allotment of ARPA money.

The significance of the protracted effort to gather cost estimates for the purchase of an elevator and the construction work is that it keeps on hold more than a dozen requests for ARPA dollars submitted by businesses, public agencies and non-profit organizations in Gasconade County. In the first round of applications — coming after the county received its first $1.4-million allocation –—the Commission approved about $600,000 worth of projects. Administrators tentatively were scheduled to review the current round of requests with Meramec Regional Planning Commission staff earlier this month, but that was postponed until county officials have an idea of the cost.