Cambria courthouse sees additional costs during heating repairs
Apr. 28—EBENSBURG, Pa. — Last fall, boilers in the Cambria County Courthouse began to be replaced.
The project, which was not completed until late January, resulted in roughly $65,000 in additional costs for temporary heaters and utilities.
The Cambria County commissioners on Thursday approved payment for an emergency repair to Servpro of Ebensburg at the cost of $38,852.63 at their meeting.
Controller Ed Cernic said that he felt the cost was high and that the county was being taken advantage of.
The county had rented two large heaters, which were both placed on the first floor of the courthouse for nearly a three-month period, according to an invoice from the company.
Items for which the county was billed include a temporary heater, an indirect fired heater, fuel surcharge, setup and a power distribution box totaling $38,852.
During this time, electric bills for the courthouse also increased. In addition to the rented heaters, space heaters were temporarily permitted in the courthouse.
From October 2021 to January 2022, the county paid Penelec and Constellation NewEnergy $8,227.21 in energy costs.
In comparison, from October 2022 to January, the county paid Penelec and WGL Energy $36,285.04 in energy costs.
According to Cernic, this is from both an increase from a new provider and an increase in use.
Work on the heating units in the courthouse began at the end of September and were completed near the end of January.
