Mississippi County Exploring New Courthouse
by September 24, 2014 5:46 pm 149 views
A new courthouse may be in the offing for Mississippi County residents sometime in the future.
The question, however, may be where will it be located.
The Mississippi County Quorum Court voted Tuesday night to start doing research on a plan to have only one courthouse in the county.
The county currently has courthouses in Blytheville and Osceola, with two separate judicial districts (the Chickasawba District and the Osceola District) for district and circuit court.
Most of the county officials – County Judge, County Clerk, Circuit Clerk, Treasurer, Assessor and Collector – have offices in both courthouses while the sheriff’s department is located near Luxora.
Terri Brassfield, administrative assistant for County Judge Randy Carney, said there is no timetable on when a courthouse would be built.
The county’s Energy and Property committee will be doing the research and talking with residents about what they want to happen, Brassfield said.
“No decision has been made. But it will be (1) at Blytheville, (2) at Osceola or (3) another place,” Brassfield said.
As for the other place, Justice Bill Nelson told content partner KAIT last week that the Arkansas Northeastern College campus at Burdette would be a good location for a new courthouse.
Both courthouses – which are each nearly 100 years old – are in desperate need of repair, Brassfield said.
“(The Blytheville courthouse), the roof leaks onto the judge’s bench. It also leaks in the balcony of the courtroom. The collector’s office floods all the time,” Brassfield said, noting the work on the roof alone would cost nearly $300,000 to complete.
Any decision on the courthouse change would have to be approved by county voters. Mississippi County is one of three counties in Northeast Arkansas – Clay and Craighead, the other two – to have two courthouses.
Brassfield said the Energy and Property Committee will meet with the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission officials at 11 a.m. on Oct. 1 in Blytheville to go over ways to make immediate repairs to the courthouses.