Reno County approves 20-year lease with Hutchinson for Law Enforcement Center after clarifying cost-share language

The Reno County Commission approved a 20-year lease agreement with the city of Hutchinson on March 10 that formalizes the city’s occupancy of the Law Enforcement Center (LEC) and specifies how capital and routine operating costs will be apportioned.

County counsel Joel O'Sullivan, who presented the draft lease, said the proposed agreement reflected a major change in building use after the sheriff moved into the new jail and vacated first-floor space previously occupied by the county. That change means the city will control roughly 68% of the LEC and the county roughly 32%, counsel said.

The lease establishes that capital expenses are defined as one-time costs over $5,000 and routine maintenance is anything under that threshold. Counsel said paragraph 9 requires the county building-maintenance director and the chief of police (or designee) to meet annually to review capital needs and anticipate projects so they can be budgeted.

Commissioners pressed staff to state percentage calculations more clearly for future reviewers. Commissioner Sellers said some clauses read awkwardly and asked for explicit percentages rather than an indirect formula. Staff agreed to insert explicit numbers and to return the document for signature.

When the item was reopened later in the meeting, Joel O'Sullivan read the clarified percentages added to the lease language: the city will pay 6.666% of a specified shared portion in paragraph b(2); the city will pay 19.04% of combined electric costs in paragraph 6(a)/(6)(b); and the city will pay 22.64% of the natural-gas bill in paragraph 6(b). Counsel said those percentages are what the county’s accounts staff will use to calculate monthly charges.

"Those percentages that we've added are what the county's accounts receivable and accounts payable clerk would use to calculate the amount they owe," O'Sullivan said. "So all she has to do is put that in her spreadsheet, and it's already there."

With the clarified language inserted, the commission voted to approve the lease and authorized signatures so the city could move forward with its plans, which include a major renovation and HVAC work that may cost $2–3 million.

Key provisions and next steps: the lease runs through June 30, 2040, is renewable by mutual agreement, enumerates what counts as capital versus routine maintenance, requires annual budgeting meetings between county maintenance staff and the chief of police, and allows earlier termination in the event of catastrophic loss. The commission instructed counsel and staff to finalize the amended document and obtain signatures.

Financial and procedural context: counsel said adoption of the resolution earlier in the meeting preserved the county’s ability to reimburse the special bridges fund if bond issuance in 2021 requires adjustments; the LEC lease decision is separate but part of concurrent facility and capital planning work.