Plan, preliminary budget accepted by commissioners

FARMINGTON – County commissioners today approved moving forward with plans to shift most county functions to the Church Street Commons, after reviewing some rough budget numbers.

The plan would involve the county purchasing the Commons building, which is located across Church Street from the Franklin County Courthouse, and moving the registry of deeds and probate court functions to the first and second floors, respectively, of the former print shop. The 10,000 square foot space would also house county administration functions, on the second floor, and the local Emergency Management Agency officials, in the first floor annex. The basement would be used for storage and a general purpose meeting room.

“This is you long-term solution for the county,” John Cleveland, a consultant working with Smith Reuter and Lull Architects, told the commissioners.

The project would also call for some renovations to the courthouse building, moving the District Attorney’s Office out of the basement to the first floor. The “white house” building, used by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department and dispatch center, would be rearranged and expanded by a few hundred square feet.

Architect Noel Smith cited a preliminary budget estimate of $4.2 million, noting that the figure was assuming several unknowns, including the final purchase price of the Commons. Commissioners are currently negotiating that price with the commercial space’s owners, Steve Braconi and Joseph Carlson.

Cleveland was hopeful that the $4.2 million project could be bonded at a reasonable rate. The recently developed Recovery Zone Economic Development Program, funded with federal money through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, offered some options for the county. In Franklin County, $1.1 million was available through a bond with an estimated interest rate of 2 percent, at least 2 percent better than either a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development bond or funding the project through the Maine Municipal Bond Bank.

Using a combination of Recovery Zone funding and a bond through the MMBB offers less interest would be paid for an overall lower price tag for the project. Cleveland said he believed that the county had a good chance at being approved for the low-rate bond, as the project was nearly “shovel ready.”

Commissioners approved filling out an application for the Recovery Zone funding, noting that the project was contingent on a positive referendum vote in November.

In other business, the commissioners instructed the county clerk and register of probate to review the policy regarding copying documents from the probate court. The county received a Freedom of Access request from an individual, following an incident at the probate court. According to Register Joyce Morton, a individual used a personnel scanning device, equipped with rollers and attached to a laptop, on some of the court documents.

Morton said her concern was that non-court devices could damage original documents. The court can copy documents with a $1 per page fee associated with that service set by statute. Many people, Morton noted, choose instead to merely review documents and make notes, which is permissible.

Commissioners asked Morton and County Clerk Julie Magoon to review the county’s policy and see if a change was necessary to make it clear that only county personnel could copy probate court documents.