Dear Editor,
The East Milton Courthouse, Sheriff’s Office, Jail complex was bungled by the county commissioners from day one. My opinion is the intent was to never build a county courthouse on the site from the conception of the project. I don’t say this lightly and will explain how I have come to this conclusion.
As a complex to be obviously built in stages, first built was a sheriff’s dept. and a jail then at a later date would be a courthouse. The main presence and the first building you should see as you drive into the complex is just common sense, it would be the courthouse. Reality is as you enter the complex and the first building you see is the sheriff’s office then the jail. Under the current commissioners insight of the project would be a courthouse in the back of the property with a shooting range located on one of the same properties intended for the Courthouse. Why would you have the public drive to the back of the complex to get to the courthouse which would be built on two of the last 3 worst parcels of land in the complex? The layout of the complex makes absolutely no sense for the courthouse location. The unused property should be at the front of the complex unless the intent by the county commissioners of that time was to never put the courthouse in the complex? Where were the original locations for the courthouse? Did they change? Or was it the original idea? When was the shooting range built on one of the two parcels still left for the courthouse?
The proper layout of the complex should have been the county courthouse out front, the sheriff’s office as a buffer between the courthouse and jail and then the jail with the back properties for the shooting range and any other future needs that might need to be addressed. That way the distance and woods between the Jail and the Jail itself along with the sheriff’s office act as a buffer for the sounds coming from the shooting range.
After driving to the complex and around it, confirms my opening opinion. I think the taxpayer bought one local government idea and has been fed something totally different as to what was announced to the taxpayer. The complex itself looks very successful but the courthouse doesn’t fit in amongst the public housing at the back of the complex. This, to me, raises even more questions about the scenario.
As for the new courthouse location with everything looking like a puzzle with pieces jammed together that don’t actually fit. The taxpayer paying for something they didn’t get and should not have to pay for it again. I now will only support the present location but endorse a location to be built on Hwy. 87 south of the sheriff’s office on already owned county land and there be a investigation into what has transpired in these past years, or let’s have some answers to see what went wrong before we make anymore decisions regarding this issue.
Steven King, Milton
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: East Milton complex questioned