SCOTT COUNTY LOOKS TO UPGRADE SHERIFF'S OFFICE

BENTON -- Scott County officials have abandoned the idea of relocating the sheriff's office to temporary quarters until a more permanent facility can be planned and built.

Instead, county commissioners are looking at upgrading the aging sheriff's office, including shoring up its sagging floor. The project would also involve kitchen and shower improvements at the adjacent county jail.

County Clerk Bob Kielhofner said county officials are currently in the process of obtaining bids and prices on the planned improvements. Kielhofner estimated the improvements could cost $15,000.

The county commission had looked at the possibility of leasing an 1,800-square-foot brick-and-concrete-block building on Highway 61 near its junction with Highway 77. The building was formerly the office of the Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS).

The building is several blocks from the county jail.

County officials had said that a two-year lease would have allowed them time to plan for a new facility.

But Presiding Commissioner Durward Dover said Wednesday that it would have been too costly to move communications equipment from the sheriff's office to the former ASCS building.

It also would have posed problems because of the distance between the sheriff's office and the jail, he said.

Dover said plans to upgrade the sheriff's office include not only structural repairs but carpeting.

Dover said there's no question the sheriff's office needs to be replaced, but the major obstacle to such a project has been "price, price, price."

"There must be a change in our revenue or budget before we can do anything really," said Dover.

The public, he said, is not in the mood to pass a tax right now. "I would certainly hesitate to ask for it."

A Scott County grand jury has called for a new sheriff's office.

The sheriff's office is a 60-year-old house, which for years served as the sheriff's residence.

The house continued to serve as the sheriff's home until the end of 1976. At that time the office was moved out of the nearby courthouse and into the old brick house.

County officials have pointed out that the house is in poor condition. The mortar between the bricks is crumbling, the flooring in the house has sagged and the basement is unusable because storm water often covers the floor. The house is also inadequate in terms of space, with some office files being stored in a bathtub, officials said.