Carbon County is continuing to work on a proposed multiuse fire training facility.

On Thursday, the commissioners approved an amendment to the contract with Delta Development Group Inc. of Mechanicsburg for an additional six months of services relative to the project.The county hired Delta in February 2015 to help find funding sources to cover the cost of the estimated $10 million project.The project will provide county fire departments with live fire training sites, a drill tower and other training necessities, as well as give police, county departments and EMS services classroom and training options that normally are completed in other counties.The emergency operations/Emergency Management Agency would also be moving into the new building to help oversee the secure site.The facility will be located on 12 acres surrounding the current Emergency Management Agency/911 Communications Center on the Broad Mountain in Nesquehoning.Commissioners' Chairman Wayne Nothstein said the company is exploring two additional avenues for grants, and anticipates applying for another one in the near future.Carbon County is waiting to hear about four grants totaling $5 million. These grants were held up because of the nine-month state budget stalemate that will end this Sunday."I hope they will be announced soon," Nothstein said, adding that the budget stalemate was partially a blessing for the project as well because it allowed the architect and engineer more time to complete preparation work and go through permitting processes."We're closer to being ready to go out to bid," Nothstein said.Carbon County will continue to pay Delta $5,000 per month for the additional six months, bringing the total cost for this service to $95,000.The county began the project last February and Nothstein said Thursday that the timeline is still on track, with an anticipated completion date in 2019.In other matters, Commissioner Thomas J. Gerhard thanked the county maintenance and IT departments for completing a few renovations at the county tax assessment office following an email from the department expressing concerns over the safety of their employees because of the office set up.The county added a few features and made the office more secure."Our number one priority is public safety and employee safety," Gerhard said.