Long-term plans to build a new sheriff’s administration building
have veered in a new direction, with supervisors this week
directing senior staff members to examine alternatives to previous
ideas of constructing a new site.
Long-term plans to build a new sheriff’s administration building have veered in a new direction, with supervisors this week directing senior staff members to examine alternatives – such as renting space – to previous ideas of constructing a new site.
The sheriff’s office administration building located on Fourth Street has been viewed by top officials for years as inadequate for the operation. Previously in preliminary talks, leaders inside and outside of the department have discussed moving the sheriff’s office to a 20-acre, county-owned plot near to the San Benito County Jail.
Officials have talked about building a 40,000-square-foot building for the sheriff’s administration site, but that idea was shelved indefinitely, if not permanently, at this week’s board of supervisors meeting.
Citing concerns over escalating construction costs and declining county revenues, the five supervisors at the afternoon session of their meeting Tuesday directed County Administration Officer Susan Thompson and others, such as Public Works Administrator Steve Wittry, to begin examining alternative options for such a project, which never had an estimated cost or time frame attached to it, said Rich Inman, assistant county administrative officer.
Another option discussed in recent talks by a building subcommittee, made up of two supervisors and other staff officials, had been the notion of renovating the current sheriff’s administration building. Supervisors all but ruled out that idea at the meeting due to the estimated $4 million cost.
“I don’t think it makes any sense to try to revamp that,” said Supervisor Anthony Botelho.
But since supervisors such as Botelho also have publicly recognized a need to find a better environment for the local sheriff’s office – the aging building has been viewed as cramped for the demands of county law enforcement – they remain keen on finding a solution.
Supervisor Margie Barrios, who sits on the building committee with Botelho, noted how the real estate market is “unbelievably low” so it is a good time to look at the other options.
“Even with remodeling and upgrades, I believe we could still end up under new construction cost,” Barrios said at the meeting.
Said Botelho: “To me, that has been a very scary notion, as far as going from the ground up.”
A more likely option at this point is that the county will either delay the site change and keep things how they are for a while or look at leasing already-constructed space.
When the county at some point does move from the current sheriff’s office site, the building probably would get demolished, at an estimated cost of $400,000, Wittry reported back to the board. If the county does not follow through and build at the jail, Thompson also mentioned the possibility of selling about half of the 20 acres owned by San Benito next to the jail and juvenile hall.
In seeking out a potential alternative, such as leasing space, the county has about $1.6 million available that staff members had identified to go toward such a project, Thompson told supervisors. That includes $1 million supervisors had set aside for design of the new sheriff’s building and $600,000 that had been allocated toward a new one-stop permit center.
