SUPERIOR — Mineral County commissioners unanimously voted Thursday to advertise in-house for a part-time grant writer, seeing an urgent need to get ahead on funding applications for county construction projects.  

Commissioners hope to fill the newly created position as soon as possible, since they want to start reconstruction of the county courthouse’s deteriorating covered entryway and the jail’s failing roof and outdated HVAC system.  

The job description, qualifications and wage for a part-time grant writer were not determined at the Feb. 12 meeting. Commissioners told the Inter Lake these will be handled by human resources. They did include in the motion to pay wages based on experience.  

The position will be temporarily funded for one year out of the county’s $2.6 million pot of cash from the federal Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund. After that, the job is hoped to become self-funded through grant administering fees.  

“If we were to get a grant writer, we might have to pay initially up front to get that person rolling,” said Commissioner Roman Zylawy. “Then, if they were good and they got grants, then they would be self-funding.” 

Mineral County’s small tax base restricts the amount of available revenue to spend on new buildings, major maintenance and desperately needed reconstruction. The county relies on grant money to fund these projects, but it’s difficult without a designated person to apply for grants.  

Commissioner Shawn Smalley created an app last week that scans for available grants across Montana. He was amazed at the sheer volume of projects and programs that could be funded through the state.  

“One of them was like a Fish Wildlife Parks grant for ... fishing opportunities for kids,” Smalley said. “And I was like, the St. Regis Park.” 

While their primary goal is to find funding for the county courthouse and jail, since construction season typically starts in the spring and they don’t want to miss out on supplemental grant opportunities, commissioners anticipate utilizing this position to find money for a slew of county projects and programs.  

“If we have somebody that's able to write grants and is good at it and good at getting those in, then we have a lot more opportunity to find funding,” Smalley said. “That's really my push. It's something I've talked about since I started, before I started here in this position.” 

EARLIER THAT day, commissioners met with representatives from IMEG Corp., an engineering firm, and Slate Architecture to discuss next steps on construction projects for the county courthouse and jail. 

The covered entryway to the courthouse is noticeably leaning to one side, due to the southern pillar slowly settling over the last several years. The brick bases of each pillar have visible cracks, and county commissioners worry about the steady stream of people who walk under it daily.  

“That portico is pretty important to us, just because it's in such disrepair,” Smalley said during the meeting. “We just don't want it to fail.” 

The jail’s roof membrane hasn’t been replaced since the jail was built in 1994. The roof lacks proper insulation, causing the facility to overheat in the summer and drop to freezing temperatures in the winter. The HVAC system also requires new units and updated technology, according to a preliminary architecture report finalized in October.  

Reps told the commissioners they need to write a request for qualifications, or RFQ, to outline the scope of their projects, which will go out to potential contractors to see if they’re qualified for the job. Then commissioners will put out a request for proposal, which will provide an estimate from contractors on how much their services will cost.  

It was also noted during the meeting that the county is considered to be highly competitive for grants, given its small taxbase, aged buildings and completed preliminary architecture and engineering reports. 

“You're very, very competitive on some of the baseline criteria,” said Mark Bellon, an engineer from IMEG. "It's just a matter of, does the project meet the criteria of the grants that we're looking for, and we need to find those grants that does meet the criteria for that.” 

Reporter Hannah Shields can be reached at 758-4439 or [email protected].