Jerry Crane at Hope Lions Club

The Hope Lions Club welcomed Hempstead County Judge Jerry Crane on Monday.  The Judge joked that when he was Sheriff he worried about pot smokers but now he worries about potholes!  On a.more serious note the Judge noted the county has had a lot of flood damage this year and the county learned they can’t get any help from FEMA although the county might get some state help.     There was much interest in the renovation of the new courthouse.  The judge says the first estimate was for $3.2 million dollars.  He said that will need to be scaled back and he’s hoping it can be done for the $1.4 million the county has earmarked for it.  Judge Crane said there was recently some water damage to the new courthouse but it is covered by insurance.  The judge also said the county is working on trying to see if the current HVAC unit can be utilized with some renovation.   The judge talked about roads and noted Richard Kidd is the new Road Superintendent.