Commercial Buildings Eyed For Veterans Office

SEBRING -- Three commercial buildings are being considered as the new home of Highlands County Veterans Services.

County officials are investigating the possibility of buying and renovating one of the three. Two are brand new, including Liberty Plaza, an unoccupied structure for professional services and retail on U.S. 27 at George Boulevard. The other new building is partially occupied.

While this option is being checked out, plans to construct a new building for Veterans Services, approved back in May, have temporarily been placed on hold.

Buying and renovating a building might have three advantages, according to county Administrator Carl Cool and county Engineer Ramon Gavarrete:

* Save taxpayer dollars compared to new construction;

* Provide a larger facility for Veterans Services; and

* Open sooner.

Joseph Dionne, the county's veterans services officer, said renovating an existing commercial building could have a fourth advantage over constructing a new building -- better visibility.

At least two of the buildings being looked at are on major roadways and a Veterans Services sign would be highly visible, he said.

In mid-May, county commissioners approved spending about $490,000 to build a 2,400-square-foot-building for Veterans Services, to move the agency out of its extremely cramped quarters at the Highlands County Health Department on George Boulevard.

"A new building would be built behind the health department and it would not be visible from the road," Dionne said.

With an estimated 20,000 veterans in Highlands County, good visibility for a new Veterans Services office is not a crucial consideration but would be a bonus, Dionne said.

"I had a veteran come in here today who's lived in Sebring for 16 years and he didn't know we were here," Dionne said.

One thing is sure. Whether commissioners decide on a new construction or renovation, office space for veterans services will quadruple, at least. Veterans Services now has just 625 square feet in the health department building.

"To put that in perspective," Dionne said, "that's about the size of a two-car garage. And the average number of clients we see on a monthly basis is about 800. When you break that down, we have about 40 veterans visiting us per day, and that's not to mention their spouses and children."

Cool said talks with the three building owners and estimates on county renovation costs are in the preliminary stage.

All three sites are being considered not only for Veterans Services, but also for the extra space needed by the Highlands County Supervisor of Elections office. The main elections office will remain in the Highlands County Government Building at 600 S. Commerce Ave., Cool said.

But, he said, Campbell needs more space for storage, training sessions for poll workers and to serve as election night headquarters.

The prospect of saving money is the sole reason that purchase and renovation of an existing building is being investigated, Cool said.

"That is what it's about, to get the best deal for the county, to save the most money and provide the service that is needed for the public," he said.

Construction of a new Veterans Services building was tentatively scheduled for completion in late summer or early fall of 2008. Renovating a building could push that move-in date up significantly, Cool and Gavarrete said.

"All we're doing is talking, we do not have a decision yet on a recommendation to the board (of county commissioners)," Gavarrete said.

Each of the three buildings under consideration would provide "substantially more space" for Veterans Services than the proposed new building, he said.

Asked if the renovation route would be less expensive, Gavarrete answered, "I think we would save time . . . but I can't tell you at this time if there would be a (cost) savings. That is part of the due diligence we're doing right now."

A recommendation may be ready to go to the county commissioners in October but is more likely in November, Gavarrete said.

Meanwhile, plans for construction of a new veterans building are being "slow-tracked," Gavarrete said.

"We didn't want to keep moving forward on bidding for services if we're possibly going to go another way," he said.