Okaloosa County commissioners are exploring a tentative agreement with the Meigs Family Trust to resolve a dispute over the future use of the courthouse annex in Shalimar.
Commissioner Nathan Boyles, who was tasked with negotiating with Clifford Meigs’ heirs, presented the proposal at a County Commission meeting earlier this week.
Under the agreement, the county would pay the Meigs Family Trust $1.6 million in four equal installments of $400,000 over four years.
Boyles said the agreement would release the annex “fully and forever” from the reverter clause, which has required the county to maintain a judicial presence at the complex.
If approved, the agreement would allow the county to use the annex “in a way that’s best for our taxpayers,” Boyles said.
“I believe, financially, it will be a smart move for the county,” he said. “I think we’ll see potential savings.”
Commissioner Wayne Harris agreed.
“I’m 100 percent in favor of this. I think it’s saving us a lot across the board,” he said.
Attorney William Linne, who represents the Meigs Family Trust, declined to comment on the issue.
Commissioners directed their staff to prepare an agreement to be presented to the board at its July 16 meeting.
The county and the trust have battled in court over the use of the annex since 2010.
The Meigs family deeded the annex property to the county in 1973. The deed includes a clause that says the land will revert to the family if all court functions are removed from the site.
The trust has argued that the county triggered the reverter clause when it built the new Courthouse Annex Extension at the C.H. “Bull” Rigdon Fairgrounds and Recreation Complex on Lewis Turner Boulevard in 2011.
The county operated a limited court presence at the annex in recent years and has been preparing to renovate the aging building to accommodate a variety of county offices. The work has been estimated to cost $11.5 million.
The county’s goal is to eliminate about $1 million in annual rental costs by moving offices to the annex.
By removing the reverter clause, the county would have more flexibility and space to move offices to the annex.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Kari Barlow at 850-315-4438 or kbarlow@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @KariBnwfdn.