The Pitt County Sheriff's Office is expected to have a new headquarters building by late summer of 2024, officials said at a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday.
But there will be a roughly $300,000 uptick in the cost approved by the Pitt County Board of Commissioners, according to the county's manager.
The groundbreaking took place on the building's future site at 100 New Hope Road, near Greene Street. The Pitt County Board of Commissioners, at its Jan. 5 regular meeting, approved a $15,645,000 construction contract with Daniels and Daniels Construction Co. of Goldsboro.
The project's overall budget at that time was reported at just over $16.9 million, with the contract accounting for the majority of those costs. Fees and other expenses also factor into the project.
At the groundbreaking, Pitt County Manager Janis Gallagher said the contract is for $15.9 million and that the project's total cost will come out to $17.3 million. She said that the price has increased since the initial discussion a year ago, with economic factors raising the cost from $6 million to $12 million, and finally the price commissioners voted on.Â
Materials from an annual Capital Improvement Plan and Budget Planning Workshop, held prior to the groundbreaking, listed the contract at $15.9 million.Â
Gallagher said the investment will provide cohesion and streamline operations for the sheriff's office, which has been operating out of five different locations for the past few years. Sheriff Paula Dance works out of the Pitt County Courthouse and there are other locations on First Street, Stantonsburg Road, the county office building on Fifth Street and an undisclosed location.
Dance also oversees the Pitt County Detention Center which will be just down the road from the administration building. She expressed gratitude and excitement about having a space for her deputies and staff to call home.
"You often hear of law enforcement officers referring to each other as a family," Dance told a crowd assembled to celebrate the event. "And what does a family need? A home. That is why it is important to be under one roof to continue to build those family bonds."
Dance said that the staff of the sheriff's office has almost doubled in size since she joined in the late 1990s. That's a result of the area's continued growth and public safety needs she said. According to the county's website, the sheriff's office employs 130 full-time deputies, seven telecommunicators and 156 detention officers.Â
Having those employees under one roof is essential for communication, Dance said. At this time, if a mass meeting had to be called there is no space that could accommodate the groups.
She said the ability to have visible work being done by her and her staff will help morale. The building also may help with recruitment, Dance said.
Dance has also been a supporter of a Family Justice Center coming to Pitt County. Those entities provide a consolidated space for law enforcement, prosecution, social services and victim aid agencies to work together and help curtail domestic violence. She was not sure if the administration building would be the site to make that a possibility.
"I'm on board with whatever we can do to be able to have those resources all in one spot," Dance said. "Who knows?"
Tim Corley, assistant county manager, said that the project should take about 18 months to complete and that the county hopes to conduct tours during the construction process to keep sheriff's office staff and the public abreast on its progress.Â
Gallagher said she anticipates the project will be finished on time and at, or below, the total budget of $17.3 million.
Daniels and Daniels has worked with the project's architect, JKF Architecture, on other Pitt County projects like the N.C. DMV's Driver's License Office at 4651 N. Creek Drive. John Farkas of JKF spoke highly of the contractor.
"I think they're one of the best contractors in the eastern part of the state, if not the state," Farkas said. "We're really excited to have them on board and work with them.
"If you look at it, for all intents and purposes it's a local architect and local contractor with Goldsboro only about 40 minutes away. We're proud to work with them, proud to work with the county and the sheriff's office," Farkas said.
