The Clark County council voted unanimously not to pursue a remodel of the council’s administrative offices, reversing the decision it made last week.
The council voted at its board time meeting today to repurpose two currently existing and unused offices to house county councilors in preparation of the November election, which will increase the three-person council to a five-person council.
The vote comes a week after the council voted 2 to 1 not to use the offices and instead build two new ones with an estimated price tag between $200,000 and $300,000.
Councilor Tom Mielke cast the dissenting vote, saying using what the county has is a cost-effective alternative.
Councilor David Madore, however, decided he wanted to revisit the issue after he inspected the two offices following last week’s meeting.
“I am very much attracted for remodel purposes to a no-cost option,” Madore said.
Councilor Jeanne Stewart, who also voted to approve the remodel, said the county will eventually have to remodel the office to accommodate new councilors.
“Am I interested in squandering unnecessary money? Absolutely not,” Stewart said, but she added that it makes more sense to update the office now as opposed to waiting.
Mielke, meanwhile, echoed the concerns he raised last week.
“I think it’s a ridiculous amount of money to spend on that, and I think we need to use what we have,” Mielke said. “It’s the proper thing to do.”
Despite Stewart’s concerns, she, along with Madore and Mielke, approved using the currently existing offices to accommodate the growing county council.
