Architect presents floor plan for sheriff?s office attachment

The Washington Communications Commission?s architect, John Mahon, has drawn a floor plan for what the dispatch center would look like if it were attached to the Washington County Sheriff?s Office at Orchard Hill. According to the drawing he presented to the commission Monday, it would attach at the north end of the sheriff?s office, take up 1,465 square feet and cost approximately $400,000.

Commission Chairman Wes Rich explained how the idea of building onto the sheriff?s office came about.

?At that time (the June commission meeting), we were discussing an addition to the jail,? said Rich. ?Later in the week, I had a discussion with Jerry [Dunbar]. It was pretty obvious that a better fit for communication would be to attach a building to the sheriff?s office. We looked at it as an opportunity to save some funds. We have stuff we don?t need to duplicate.?

Specifically, Rich said that the lobby in the sheriff?s office could be shared with the dispatch center.

The floor plan Mahon presented to the commission does not include a breakroom. Mahon told the commissioners that if they wanted a breakroom, it would add at least 150 square feet and perhaps 250 square feet to the project. At $175 per square foot, the cost of a 150-square-foot breakroom would be about $26,000. Mahon said that figure could be upwards of $35,000.

Commissioner Bob Shepherd said, ?When these guys (dispatchers) are on duty, they can?t leave. I?m a little concerned about the lack of a place to break. I do know what that?s worth. It?s terribly fatiguing not being able to break.?

Rich said that the dispatchers would have access to the breakroom in the sheriff?s office.

Commissioner Merlin Hagie said that, while he was initially supportive of building at Orchard Hill, he has received negative feedback from his constituents over the expense of the project. He said this has caused him to change his mind about where to house the dispatch center.

?I stated several times that I preferred a new facility at Orchard Hill,? said Hagie. ?Now I have to admit that, in conversations in this last month, I have been conferring with citizens in this community and I basically got it jammed down my throat because they said to me, ?It?s the money, stupid.? I have to say that those who elected me, their opinions are important. I?m not going to put my opinion ahead of theirs.?

Rich said he could relate stories from county residents who wanted a new building.

?I?ve had constituents come to me and tell me that if I were really forward-thinking, and thinking about the younger generation who will thank us for building a new building,? said Rich. ?The public wants something that is going to take care of them in emergencies.?

Commissioner Brenda Carey asked Mahon how long a new building would last compared to the two existing buildings under consideration, the former library and the former jail.

?We always say we construct for 50 years and hope for more,? said Mahon. ?This building (the former library) has been standing for a long time. It?s harder to predict how long it will last. If the city takes care of it, it could last a long time. There?s nothing to say it can?t be a long-term building as well.?

Mahon told the commission that the dispatchers had not yet seen his floor plan for the attachment to the sheriff?s office.

?No matter what plan you pick, that plan will become a tweaked plan at some point, because you have to make adjustments based on the users of the building,? said Mahon. ?Right now, it?s a framework.?

Dunbar said at the meeting that he estimates he could save $20,000 from his budget if the dispatch center were at Orchard Hill.

?The city [police] would spend some time going out there, but when you look at the sheriff?s office, it?s more than just a patrol and investigation unit,? said Dunbar. ?We?re also responsible for the civil office. We?re responsible for the jail and all the activities in there.?

Jerry Kauffman, who serves on the E911 Board, suggested that the sheriff?s office could fund the construction of the new building.

?What I?m hearing is that if his budget pays the commission?s rent, it would be a wash,? said Kauffman. ?Is that what I hear??

Dunbar replied, ?It works for me. I don?t know if it will work for them.?