Age, Quakes Escalate Damage To Kansas Courthouse

Age, along with the area’s frequent earthquakes, has caused more than $1.1 million in damage to Harper County’s courthouse. An insurance adjuster with earthquake damage experience was in town about 10 days ago to assess concerns regarding the courthouse’s outside staircases, as well as to inspect cracks vining across interior walls in the southeast part of the structure, said County Clerk Cheryl Adelhardt. Because of dilapidation due to age, county commissioners were planning to renovate the 107-year-old staircases – a project estimated at $400,000 by an engineer a year ago, said County Commissioner Carla Pence.