FRANKLIN COUNTY — There are two town hall meetings Franklin County residents can attend this week dealing with the county’s proposed new courthouse in Benton and the sales tax referendum that if passed on April 2 will generate revenue for courthouse construction and nothing else.

The first one is set for Tuesday night at 6 at the Coello Community Center. The second town hall is set for Thursday night at 6 at the Zeigler Fire Station.

If you can’t attend these meetings, the final town hall will take place Tuesday, March 19 at 6 p.m. at the Sesser Community Building.

The current courthouse was built in the 1870s and needs to be replaced due to many physical and structural problems. The sales tax would sunset once the courthouse is paid off.

When the Franklin County Board passed the resolution in December for the sales tax referendum, the board said the preliminary price tag on this project would fall somewhere in the $15 to $20 million range.