Sheriff’s office dispatch center move proceeding

DOVER-FOXCROFT — The construction process to move the Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center from cramped conditions in the county jail in Dover-Foxcroft into the administrative unit of the sheriff’s office on the first floor of the same building is currently proceeding.

“The dispatch project is coming along well, I think we are going to be in there early,” Sheriff Bob Young said during a Tuesday, July 16 meeting of the Piscataquis County Commissioners. 

In the spring County Manager Michael Williams said the project is on pace to be completed ahead of schedule, even after asbestos was found. He said the renovations should be done the third or fourth week of July and the dispatch consoles should be moved in the second week of August — well ahead of the Sept. 9 project deadline.

In early March Old Town-based project architect Vicki Leavitt told county officials all the contracts and permits were in place to begin a 6-month timeline through Sept. 9. In late November the county commissioners voted to proceed with a $668,944 project bid from Ganneston Construction, the lowest of three received.

County officials had planned to move the dispatch center from the control room at the correctional facility in Dover-Foxcroft into the patrol and investigation divisions building in downtown Guilford. Financially and logistically, the sheriff’s office was determined to be a better home for dispatch.

Leavitt looked at three options for the dispatch center’s new location, including the basement of the Peaks House, which houses county offices and commissioners chambers; the basement of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension building; and the first floor of the sheriff’s office. She recommended refurbishing the first floor of the sheriff’s office to meet the needs of administrative employees and dispatchers. Leavitt also said the former dispatch space will be used by jail staff with the locking doors remaining in place.

The dispatch center is too small for current and future operations, and office space is shared with corrections staff, according to the presentation made by Communications Design Consulting Group.

The dispatch center, when it was set to move to Guilford, was estimated to have cost $500,000, plus another $57,000 fee for an architect. By moving the dispatch center to a space in the sheriff’s office, where cable is already in place, a tower would not need to be built. The new tower was estimated to cost more than $100,000.

Williams said a storm that passed through the region the week prior led to some roof leaks above the construction.

“One is right above where the new consoles will be,” Head of Maintenance Josh York said. He said Ganneston Construction has a roofing contractor it works with and York will be meeting with representatives of the firms soon.

“I don’t think the roof itself is bad,” York said. He said water likely came through where different sections of roof meet and around vents, areas that have not yet been fully sealed.

“I don’t think it’s major or bad, but it just needs to be addressed,” York said.

In his report, Williams said he and other county officials are assessing storm damage which he said occurred in multiple locations across the region.

Williams said it will be tough on the budget with the road damage also sustained in a late December storm less than seven months prior. Decisions will be made in the future after in-depth discussions but some projects may need to be pushed off with funds going toward storm repairs.

The county manager said interviews are taking place for the Piscataquis County Emergency Management Agency director position. “The interview committee should be bringing a name forward to you at your next meeting,” Williams told the commissioners.

Staff Writer Valerie Royzman contributed to this story.