Aug. 5, 2026
VIROQUA Wis. – Vernon County is grappling with a potential cost increase of more than $500,000 for proposed building upgrades after a detailed energy audit revealed mandatory code compliance issues at the county jail.
The county decided to pursue a comprehensive energy audit late last year after identifying building upgrades and heating and cooling improvements as critical long term needs during its strategic planning sessions. Facilities Director Phil Hewitt initially wanted to address the courthouse annex using local contractors, but the committee pushed for a countywide approach. The county put out a request for proposals and interviewed three firms before selecting Schneider Electric of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, in April. Under the terms of the Investment Grade Audit agreement, Schneider Electric agreed to perform a detailed evaluation of the courthouse annex, the Banta building, the Erlandson building, and the Sheriff’s Office. If the county board chooses to move forward with the recommended upgrades, the audit costs are absorbed into the final contract, but if the county decides to walk away and do nothing, it is on the hook for a $30,635 exit fee.
In June, the Finance Committee tentatively approved a $3 million budget targeting the highest priority projects, which included replacing aging mechanical equipment at the Sheriff’s Office and establishing a countywide building automation system to replace a patchwork of outdated controls.
However, during the most recent General Government Committee meeting, Conner Trepton of Schneider Electric presented updated pricing that pushed the estimated total for the first phase of upgrades to between $3.5 million and $3.6 million. Trepton explained that the $500,000 to $600,000 cost hike is driven by mandatory code requirements discovered during detailed engineering at the Sheriff’s Office.
Under the 2021 International Energy Code, which Wisconsin has officially adopted, any substantial mechanical upgrades require variable flow systems. Trepton noted that the jail’s current cooling system lacks this feature, meaning Schneider cannot simply do a like for like replacement of the rooftop chillers and water pumps.
“So that is a code compliance thing that we are required to do and why the price went up on the mechanical side,” said Trepton. “On the automation side, the biggest thing was that we have since engaged with fire protection services and determined we do need to separate the control from the fire system.”
Trepton explained that the jail’s current building automation system, which was grandfathered in when the facility was constructed in 2004, is intertwined with the fire alarm and smoke controls. Under state law, any major mechanical alterations trigger a requirement to have the entire facility certified and the fire system recertified, which forces the county to separate the systems.
“Because of that, as soon as we make these mechanical changes and the associated changes, we do need to divorce the fire and smoke system from the automation system,” said Trepton. “And stand up a fire and smoke system that is wholly independent.”
The proposed countywide building automation system has become a central point of debate, with officials analyzing the long-term logic and financial breakdown of the centralized technology. Trepton described the automation system as the central brains of the facility.
“The building automation system is essentially the the brains of the facility,” said Trepton. “Those controls and those boards that are there have been in that building. Many many of those pieces of equipment have been there for 20 plus years.”
Instead of undertaking a large, expensive mechanical renovation at Banta and Erlandson, Trepton explained that the county could achieve immediate comfort and efficiency upgrades through better control of their existing systems.
“Last time, we had kind of discussed, as opposed to doing a large mechanical project here and at the Erlandson facility, we could realize certain efficiency upgrades and comfort upgrades through better control of the existing equipment, as opposed to needing to like rip out and replace all of that equipment, which would be far more expensive,” said Trepton. “So that was part of the direction in terms of going to one centralized platform.”
Trepton pointed out that the Erlandson building is currently controlled by a dozen residential units that function completely independently of one another.
“Right now, there is no one thing controlling roughly 12 residential style furnaces in that facility, and they don’t talk to each other,” said Trepton. “For 56,000 to $64,000 at Erlandson, you will see you know a dramatic improvement in the comfort of those spaces by adding a building on a centralized BAS system.”
Trepton reassured the committee that the centralized platform is highly adaptable, meaning any future equipment upgrades can be easily integrated into the existing software.
Facilities Manager Ryan Marx supported the logic of a unified countywide system, explaining that it would allow him to immediately diagnose comfort issues from any location rather than walking through multiple physical steps. Marx added that having a centralized alert system would allow the maintenance department to catch equipment glitches before they escalate into major breakdowns. Marx noted that he currently spends a significant portion of his week manually resetting the outdated Trane communication boards at the courthouse.
“You got a train system that operates the courthouse, HVAC stuff, the boilers and the the chiller and stuff like that, and then in the annex site here, you have the residential hunting well system with separate furnaces and ACs,” said Marx. “I spend two to three times a week resetting stuff to get it so it talks back and forth and operates valves.”
Administrative Coordinator Nate Torres urged the committee to look at the individual building costs to understand exactly where the county’s money is being spent.
“Part of the reason why I ask Connor to really break these numbers down better is to give us a sense of like is the bulk of the money, which buildings the bulk of money going to,” said Torres. “When you look at this BAS breakout, it’s $1.5 million. Of that $1.5 million, $1.1 million is the sheriff’s office, right? And so you are talking about over 67, 68 percent of that cost is directed towards one building alone.”
Torres noted that while the Erlandson portion is comparatively minor, the proposed upgrade for the courthouse and annex is a significant financial consideration.
Trepton explained that because the courthouse and annex currently operate on different, unlinked control systems, the heating and cooling can often work against each other.
“So this building obviously designed in kind of two parts that have different control systems, they don’t talk to each other,” said Trepton. “There’s a there’s a number of kind of like blind spots.”
Trepton noted that these blind spots directly cause the extreme temperature fluctuations that employees often complain about during long meetings.
“You might have two systems fighting each other,” said Trepton. “So that’s part of the solution to try and integrate that all into one under one umbrella and have it be the same solution that we’re installing at the the sheriff’s office.”
The revelation of additional costs sparked an intense debate among committee members about the financial wisdom of committing to such a large capital project while the county faces tight budget constraints.
Committee member Paul Wilson questioned how the county arrived at this point without exploring simpler, more direct solutions first.
“Why did we not have bids for replacement,” said Wilson. “I know tight budgets, but just rolling some of that around in my head.”
Supervisor Dave Eggen pointed out that the committee’s decision would inevitably shift the final funding challenge to the Finance Committee and the full county board.
“So this proposal now you go back to finance and they have to find another $600,000, basically,” said Eggen. “Now it is time to start replacing the parts.”
Supervisor Bruce Kilmer countered that delaying the repairs to avoid the upfront costs is a short sighted strategy that would only leave the county with a more expensive emergency down the road.
“We are at that point now, and we can kick the can down the road like everybody else did, and it is just going to cost us more,” said Kilmer. “If we kick the can down the road, we did not do any better than those reports.”
Marx strongly urged the committee to approve the entire scope of work, arguing that a complete system failure at the jail would create a massive operational and legal liability.
“My recommendation would be to do the entire thing,” said Marx. “It would solve some of my other issues, you know, within the other buildings.”
Marx warned that the county cannot afford to wait until the heating or cooling systems fail completely in a facility that houses inmates 24 hours a day.
“If we lose the one boiler, now we are in an emergency situation,” said Marx. “If you lose one of the chillers on top, you are in an emergency situation.”
Torres urged the committee to look for ways to massage the project specifications and potentially negotiate lower equipment prices before accepting the higher estimates.
“Where within the approval process do we identify cost savings from sort of massaging what you put in,” said Torres. “We are using this brand name versus that, you know, whatever it may be.”
Despite the debate over the Sheriff’s Office, the committee agreed that some proposed building projects should be put on hold. Schneider’s initial assessment recommended pausing any major HVAC work at the Erlandson building because it is currently conditioned with residential furnaces that do not supply outside air, and bringing it up to modern commercial code would drastically increase utility usage.
The committee also reviewed preliminary findings from a building envelope walkthrough conducted at the end of June. The envelope scope would involve sealing doors, windows, and pipe penetrations to prevent drafts across all four county buildings, though window sealing at the historic courthouse was specifically excluded.
The General Government Committee ultimately directed Schneider to continue refining the costs and exploring equipment alternatives with Marx. The updated proposal is expected to be presented to the home committees in October, with a final county board vote on a construction contract anticipated in November.
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