GriggsCourthousenewbldgCooperstown (CSi) — The Griggs County Courthouse construction project remains idle, three months following construction crews walking off the job over payment issues.

The  Courthouse and Emergency Operations Center, in Cooperstown is nearly completed.

The dispute involves the $1.25 million Emergency Operations Center portion of the project.

Construction Engineers, the project’s Grand Forks-based general contractor, and subcontractors stopped working on the project May 2, 2014, after the contractor said the county was overdue on paying $170,000 in bills. The project is estimated to be 90 to 95 percent completed.

The County has obtained a $1 million federal grant awarded to build the EOC portion of the $3.5 million project, and North Dakota Department of Emergency Services has released two payments totaling nearly $160,000 to the county.

The Griggs County project involves two separate projects within one contract, with each controlled by a different group, a result of a recall election last October in which all five county commissioners were defeated.

The county has until September 2015 to comply with grant regulations, or lose the federal funding.