BATH – Steuben County legislators approved Monday bids for a capital construction project which includes an office/conference center on East Morris Street, and a records building on Mount Washington. The county Legislature also approved a proposal to build a third-story shell at the downtown center, provided total costs remain under the projects’ total budget of $8.9 million. The projects’ costs will be paid through a bond and county reserves, and will not mean an increase property taxes. Steuben officials have been concerned for years about the lack of space at the county building and the inconvenience for residents looking for services. State-mandated programs, notably in public defense, also are likely to require additional space in the near future. In addition, the county leases space at the Old Health Care Facility on Mount Washington in order to house electronic voting machines and state-required records. Plans call for:
1) Offices for the county Board of Elections and electronic voting machines. 2) Offices and an instructional kitchen for Steuben’s Cornell Cooperative Extension. 3) A 150-seat conference room which could be divided into smaller meeting rooms as needed.
4) A 4,300 square-foot metal storage facility on Mount Washington to include an office and state required "inactive" records. County officials and a special legislative committee have considered expansion options for more than two years, including the use of vacant properties on Liberty Street. However, owning unoccupied space in Bath’s business district would take the properties off the village’s tax rolls, create new expenses in meeting office requirements and lead to inefficiencies, since services would be spread out. "We believe that this project will allow the county to address the immediate shortage of space, while also planning for future needs," said County Manager Jack Wheeler. "It’s a fiscally responsible plan that will create efficiencies in county services."
