The Warren County Commission will appeal the circuit court ruling requiring the county to pay for a city building permit related to the ongoing construction of the new administration building. The appeal filed with the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, means the legal spat between the county and city will continue. The county commission, which initiated the lawsuit, contended that under state law it was not required to obtain and pay for city building permits related to the county's administration building. City officials disputed the county's interpretation of the law and maintained the county was in violation of city building codes by not obtaining and paying for the building permit. Under protest, the county commission paid a total of $27,406 to the city for separate building and stormwater permits. Of that amount, $26,781 is for the building permit. Franklin County Associate Circuit Judge David Tob-ben ruled on Dec. 30 that the county commission was not exempt from paying city building permit fees. He issued the ruling nearly 10 months after arguments were heard in a case that pitted the county against the city. Commissioners, however, disagreed with Tobben's ruling. They said that the basis of their appeal rests on the fallout statewide where all counties will be subject to municipalities' permitting requirements. They said multiple phone calls have been fielded from officials across the state who were awaiting the circuit court ruling. "This will be a precedent set anytime a county builds in a city," Northern District Commissioner Dan Hampson said. "We don't want to drag this out anymore than we have to, but this has to go to a higher court. I look at it like this, this is a double tax on the citizens of the county." City attorney Chris Graville was disappointed to see the county file the appeal after hoping that a resolution had been reached following the circuit court ruling. "It's more money, time spent on an issue that we had a judge rule on and say this is the law," Graville told The Record. "They have the right to appeal and they are exercising their right to appeal. I wish for the community's sake we could move on." Commissioners said there was a "definite concern" about continuing to pay for the legal expenses related to the ongoing litigation. When asked how much they had spent up to this point, they said it was not immediately known. "I regret having to spend it, but you have to uphold the statutes," Presiding Commissioner Arden Engelage told The Record. "We were elected to follow the statutes. That is what I felt we were doing. You come to a point where you have to make a stand." Commissioners filed the lawsuit on Oct. 20, 2010, after the city posted a stop work order at the job site Oct. 15 and issued a summons to an employee of T.S. Banze Construction after he continued performing grading work that same day. County commissioners said they told the contractor to continue working following two site visits by Jim Daly, city building commissioner, earlier that morning. Construction is continuing on the county's 36,670-square-foot, two-story administration building. The building is located on a 3-acre site on South Highway 47 and Mockingbird Lane in Warrenton. The new facility will house all non-court related county offices. The overall project is estimated to cost $6.5 million with construction expected to be completed by April. The municipal case involving the stop work order violation is pending, through the next court appearance is scheduled for this Thursday.