Discussion Continues on Possibility of Courthouse Annex

​At Monday’s Board of Osage County Commissioners meeting, there was continued discussion on the possibility of adding an annex onto the Osage County Courthouse in Pawhuska. District Attorney Mike Fisher started by saying the Oklahoma treasury department hasn’t given clarification that the American Rescue Plan Act money can be used to fund the annex, but with contractors and other individuals with vested interest in the project, they continued the conversation.
Jeff Raley, a lawyer from Norman, who has spent a lot of time working to give Osage County an annex, or something similar, said they are working on a similar project in Kay County. He went on to detail that project and explain how the annex in Pawhuska would differ.
Raley said funding for the annex in Kay County is at six million dollars and he told the Board that he would expect between 10 and 12 million dollars to be spent to construct the annex in Osage County.
District One Commissioner Randall Jones said it would be difficult on the county financially if they were to construct the annex without the funds from the federal government.
At this point, the Board will wait to see what the Oklahoma Treasury Department says before taking any further action. Fisher is unsure when they may hear something on that.