VAN BUREN -- FEMA got it wrong. Gene Oakley hopes Carter County won't.
The stone facade courthouse -- the only one of its kind in Missouri -- dates back to 1871, according to the former presiding commissioner, former state representative, former school superintendent and local historian.
That's about 65 years earlier than the date recorded in a report from the federal agency that wants to pay to replace the building damaged in the historic 2017 flood.
A public meeting will be held at 9 a.m. Friday at the temporary Carter County offices to discuss a decision that has angered many residents, and prompted the campaign, "It's our house. Let's fix it."
"One of the points I want to drive home is, the decisions that are made today are not just for today," said Oakley. "We're looking at decisions that will impact generations unborn.
"I'm proud of the way the place has looked over the years and I know it can look good inside again."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency says their damage estimates put the county seat 3 percent over the limit for repairs. In other words, the $665,000 needed to patch up the first floor, replace an elevator and make repairs to the plumbing and electrical is equal to 53 percent of their estimated cost of $1.252 million to build a new courthouse.
When repairs cost more than 50 percent of replacement, FEMA provides money for replacement, officials with the agency said last week.
The price tag of a new courthouse was based on database calculations for a 2-4 story wood frame office building, with a stone veneer and no basement, according to an April 2018 report compiled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for FEMA.
The same report dates construction of the existing courthouse at 1936, but Oakley argues that was the year the stone facade and what he calls the side wings were added.
"I'm wondering if they know the true age of the courthouse," said Oakley.
The core of the county seat, a two-story cracker box, was commissioned at a cost of $3,000 in 1871, the details of which Oakley included in the sesquicentennial edition of his book, "A History of Carter County." The county was still in its infancy at the time, only 12-years-old.
The courthouse was built from lumber sawed in Carter County, and hand-planed in Van Buren.
As presiding commissioner, Oakley oversaw the replacement of the courthouse roof. When the contractor stripped back five layers of roofing materials, all the way to what Oakley believes were the original wood shake shingles, they found those rough, hand-cut boards.
The commissioners had those boards preserved in place, under a new covering of plywood before the roof was replaced.
The fieldstone facade that was added later came from a nearby hillside, Oakley was told.
Current presiding commissioner Donald Black has promised the county would seek grants to preserve the old courthouse once government offices move on.
Oakley sees a grimmer future for the building that has seen generations of residents walk through its doors to file marriage licenses and property deeds.
"I figure it would eventually just deteriorate and fall down," Oakley said Wednesday afternoon, standing on the courthouse lawn. "I really care about what happens. That's my agenda. I care about Carter County and doing everything we can for the people who live here and generations to come.
"I think we need to back off, take a deep breath, involve the public and assess the possibilities."
At a public meeting just over a week ago, Black promised to listen to discussions of how the public could look into other options.
But he was publicly skeptical, saying no private money has been offered yet for repairs and questioning what the county would do after another flood.
He has also said this decision will impact future generations, either providing a new, state-of-the-art facility paid for by FEMA or putting residents' grandchildren in debt to preserve the old building.
The 2017 flood that damaged downtown Van Buren broke century-old records and Oakley feels it was a once-in-a-generation event.
He points out the people who have repaired and returned to the courthouse square, including the barber across the street, the license bureau and the post office.
Black has previously pointed out the ones who didn't, including the Float Stream restaurant which has a new location on Highway 60 and a grocery store.
The courthouse is the heart of Van Buren, the heart of Carter County, according to Oakley.
"This is critical. We have to do something here," said Oakley, who also fears the "knee-jerk reaction, tear down, throw away. ...
"You start to tear that down, and it'll be over my dead body."