A hearing is scheduled March 2 in the lawsuit between the Warren County Commission and the city of Warrenton over construction permits related to the new county administration building. Franklin County Associate Circuit Judge David Tobben will preside at the 2 p.m. hearing. Prior to Tuesday’s brief informal hearing, the city filed a motion Jan. 4 seeking to have the county’s lawsuit dismissed. The county last month filed a motion seeking a summary judgment. Tobben said all arguments and all pending motions will be heard at the March 2 hearing. Tobben was appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court late last month after the city filed a motion to disqualify 12th Judicial Circuit Presiding Judge Keith Sutherland from hearing the case. Though they are protesting the city’s permit procedure, the county commission has paid a total of $27,406 to the city for separate building and stormwater permits. Of that, $26,781 is for the building permit alone. Construction, meanwhile, continues on the county’s 36,670-square-foot, two-story building on 3 acres it purchased in 2009 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. Construction is slated to be completed in February 2012. The lawsuit, filed in Warren County Circuit Court 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. The county commissioners said they told the contractor to continue working. The county contends that under state law it is not required to obtain and pay for city building permits. The suit requests that the court decide the permit issue and require the city to return the money the county paid under protest. It also seeks the withdrawal of all municipal ordinance citations issued as well as attorney fees and damages for the construction delay. Commissioners previously stated that since excavation and grading was delayed over the dispute, the project was put at least two weeks behind schedule since the contractor had to leave the job site and then remobilize. City officials dispute the county’s interpretation of the law and maintain the county is in violation of city building codes by not obtaining and paying for the construction permits. The city is being represented by city attorney Chris Graville and also has hired the Kirkwood law firm of Vogel, Rost and Cunningham to serve as co-counsel in the suit. The county is being represented by Kent Munson, of The Stolar Partnership, the county’s regular law firm.