LIBERTY, Mo. -- A controversial plan for a new county annex in Clay County was approved Wednesday, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a done deal.
County Commissioners Leann Ridgeway and Gene Owen cast the majority votes to approve the annex at 152 and North Brighton in Liberty, rebuffing Presiding Commissioner Jerry Nolte's lone vote against the $2 million project.
They argue the annex is an investment in Clay County's future.
"We are out of space, we need to upgrade," Ridgeway said. "I think for the future of Clay County, it would be a great location," Owen added.
County Auditor Victor Hurlbert threw some hot water on the deal shortly after commissioners voted to approve it, arguing that the county simply can't afford the annex, and the vote to approve the contract may be non-binding.
"How I read the statute, that contract has no force. We have no obligation to pay," Hurlbert said.
And as long as Hurlbert stands in the way, the county can't get the funds to break ground on its new annex.