GARNETT — A county official says a decorative gazebo at the new Anderson County Law Enforcement center is not guilty. The new $5.5 million law enforcement center came in $55,000 over budget and critics have accused the gazebo of being guilty. However, Mike Rockers, Anderson County Public Building Commission, defended the gazebo. The gazebo was part of the original plans for the new center, he said. The gazebo cost less than $6,000, he added. The gazebo includes a trellis and columns and is on top of an underground tunnel that links the law enforcement center and courthouse. The gazebo helped make it easier for the Kansas Historical Society to approve plans for the new center, which is next to the historic Anderson County Courthouse, he said. Rockers said the project went over budget because of changes in the center’s electrical and communications systems. The county has reserves to cover the extra costs.
