BENTON -- Scott County commissioners hope to replace the 60-year-old sheriff's office this year, either with a new building or purchase of an existing structure.

Lynn Ingram, First District commissioner from Sikeston, said the existing sheriff's office, adjacent to the jail in Benton, is in poor shape.

"That old office over there is just about on its last leg to be honest about it," Ingram said at the courthouse late last week where he and his fellow commissioners were working on drawing up the 1992 county budget.

"I am not in favor of spending money on that old thing over there," he said.

Ingram said county officials have talked about either building a new sheriff's office or buying an existing building.

He emphasized that the commissioners are talking strictly of a new sheriff's office and not a new jail.

Presiding Commissioner Durward Dover said the sheriff's office is in such poor condition that "it would be sending good money after bad to repair it."

He said the sheriff's office is beyond repair.

"We are discussing all the options and really haven't settled on anything yet," said Dover. "That will have to come up after we get through with the budget in February."

He said that there are buildings close to the jail, which might be suitable for a sheriff's office.

"We are looking at anything that is available right now," said Dover.

Sheriff Bill Ferrell said a county grand jury earlier this year inspected county facilities and recommended that a committee be formed to plan for construction of a new sheriff's office and develop future plans for a jail.

"They said something needs to be done as soon as possible," said Ferrell.

Dover said, "We are at the point that we are going to have to do something, either a temporary move or a permanent move. Temporary moves are usually expensive and they are not the ideal solution," he noted.

At this point, no decision has been made on how to pay for a new sheriff's office. "There is always the possibility of a tax measure, but it is the last choice in my mind.

"No one is opposed to taxes anymore than I am," he said.

Dover said he hopes the county will have a new sheriff's office by this summer.

Ferrell said the only way that can happen is if the county buys an existing building.

The Scott County health department, which operates with its own tax levy, is housed in a building across the street from the jail.

Ferrell said county officials had looked at the possibility of acquiring that building for a sheriff's office.

"If we could have bought the health department building, which is immediately across the street, that would have been okay," the sheriff said.

But he said there's no other existing building near the jail that reasonably could be used for a sheriff's office.

"We need to be right there at the jail," he explained.

The existing jail and adjacent house for the sheriff were built in 1932. Back then, it was common practice for counties to furnish living quarters for the sheriff and his family.

The house continued to serve as the sheriff's home until the end of 1976, when Ferrell came into office.

At that time, the sheriff's office was moved out of the courthouse and into the old brick house.

But the condition of the house has deteriorated. The mortar between the bricks is crumbling, the flooring in the house has sagged and the basement is unusable because storm water covers the floor several times a year, Ferrell said.

"Our building is in such bad shape, it's an embarrassment to the public when they come into it," the sheriff said.

Dover said the house is really too small to serve the needs of the sheriff's department.

The six-room house is being used to capacity. The office is so short of space that some files are being stored in the bathtub.

Neither the jail nor the sheriff's office have public restrooms, and neither is accessible to the handicapped, Ferrell said.

But he said his biggest concern is that the sheriff's office, with its old boiler heating system, is a fire hazard. He said the office has no vault to store department records.

In a fire, he said, 60 years worth of department records could be lost.

Although the jail was also built in 1932, it was renovated and expanded in 1971. It can hold nearly 50 prisoners.

In 1990, Scott County officials considered building a new, combined sheriff's office and jail.

Dover said the commissioners abandoned that idea because the county couldn't afford it.

He said that with a stagnant economy, declining sales tax revenue and lower interest rates on the county's investments, county commissioners will have to take a hard look at how to pay for a new sheriff's office.

Ferrell said that if the commissioners decide to build a new sheriff's office, he would like to see it built next to the jail, with an architectural plan for future expansion.

The issue has been talked about for several years, but the county commission has yet to reach a decision, he said.

"I've got to tell them (the commissioners) what the needs are, but I don't have any control over what they do," the sheriff pointed out.

Ingram, who served for 24 years as circuit clerk before being elected First District commissioner two years ago, views a new sheriff's office as a top priority.

He has filed for re-election to a second term, but faces opposition in the August Democratic primary from Sikeston businessman Walter Bizzell.

Also facing opposition in the Democratic primary is Joe "Amos" Spalding of Benton, who filed Thursday for re-election to a third term as Scott County's Second District commissioner.

Spalding, who owns Spalding Trucking Co. in Benton, was elected in 1988 to a two-year term and re-elected in 1990. He is opposed by Oran Mayor Bob Dennis.