Time to replace sheriff’s office

To the Editor:

The Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Office is asking for your support on Nov 3 at the ballot box.  Voters will decide on borrowing money to build a new Sheriff’s law enforcement center.

The current Sheriff’s Office was built in the 1890’s to provide housing for the Sheriff, who at that time was expected to live in the jail.  In the 1980’s it was renovated to provide office space for the Sheriff’s patrol staff and administration.  Even then, it was an old house with narrow staircases and hallways, and was cramped for space.

Law enforcement has changed much since 1990 and this space has long outlived its purpose.  The current office has no space for files, processing evidence, interviewing suspects or victims.  In fact, deputies scramble to find a vacant office in the courthouse next door.  For example, when an elderly or disabled person wants to see the Sheriff, the investigators have to vacate their work area so that they can meet in private.  Or consider the indignity of parading a victim around the courthouse trying to find a quiet place to talk.

The current building has safety issues and if one was to be on the second floor or in the basement when a fire hit you have no place to go.  Employees are crawling around and over ductwork so they can access the stored case files because there is no place else to store files.

I’m very proud of the work our employees do; they work with diligence and make the best of a very poor work environment.  But we have reached a point where things are untenable.  As law enforcement becomes more complex, we need to provide the tools for them to do their work with efficiency and design.

The proposed building is a very basic and efficient building.  To build any public building in our time for $610,000 is virtually unheard of, but demonstrates that every effort has been taken to provide an affordable, efficient, law enforcement center that can meet the needs of our county for the foreseeable future.  The payments will be spread over 10 years and represent less than one percent of the county budget.

Anyone who has toured the current office area has come away with two basic conclusions: how do they get any work done and what a difficult environment to work in.  We love this county and are proud to serve to the best of our ability.  Your support at the ballot will enable us to serve you in a much better capacity.

Bob Young, chief deputy