News Details - County Moves Ahead in Eying Community Justice Space Options

The Legislature, by a vote of 13-2 (Legislators Kathy Luz Herrera and Leslyn McBean-Clairborne voted no), directed staff to proceed with investigation of the possibility of relocating the Day Reporting and Family Treatment Court programs, currently located in the Community Justice Center at the Old County Library, to the Human Services Building. The Legislature allocated $8,000 in contingency funding to support the space analysis, expected to be completed within 60 days. The County Facilities Division, working with an independent architect, has told the Capital Program Review Committee that remodeling may enable those two programs to be relocated to the ground floor of that building, by utilizing space currently occupied by a credit union and the Beverly Livesay Conference Room. The Legislature last year directed staff to investigate alternate locations for programs housed at the Old Library.

Legislator Luz Herrera said her “no” vote reflects ongoing concern about the loss of public meeting space, should the Livesay Conference Room no longer be available; however, she said she is encouraged by language of the resolution that indicates that the study will explore potential opportunities for limited use of Livesay Conference Room at times when the room would not be used by Day Reporting. Legislator Will Burbank said he shares concern about the meeting space issue and cautioned that, while voting in favor of the study, he remains uncertain regarding whether the program relocations are advised.

04-05-2011