To build or not to build?

The Marion County Human Resources building is shown in the McPherson Governmental Complex in Ocala, Fla. on Wednesday, May 5, 2021. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2021.

The Marion County Board of County Commissioners recently met with staff to consider options for upgrading or replacing high-use county properties including court facilities and libraries.

The May 17 visioning workshop was held at the McPherson Governmental Campus Auditorium, 601 SE 25th Ave., which, coincidentally, was one of the structures discussed. Others included the Marion County Judicial Center and a library or mobile unit for Silver Springs Shores residents.

Facilities Management Director Jared Goodspeed brought up concerns about the McPherson structure’s 58 years of wear and tear. The anticipated cost to maintain the complex over the next 10 years is $18.5 million.

Goodspeed proposed creating a 25-year comprehensive master plan to determine the costs of rebuilding vs. upgrading the property’s structures along with operational plans “to guide the best decision.”

“The interesting part about this,” he said, “is that if we were to maintain our current structures with maintenance utilities and just basic CIP (critical infrastructure protection) maintenance to keep the buildings from falling apart, we’re basically at $81 million over the course of 25 years.

“We could potentially not spend $28 million over the next five to 10 years. So, that’s why I think this is the perfect time to have that study done,” he said.

Goodspeed also brought up the Fifth Circuit Judicial Center’s five-story addition, which was constructed in 2011. Each floor is approximately 30,000 square feet, but both the third and fourth floors have remained vacant for 12 years. The fourth floor is scheduled for construction in 2024.

He suggested creating a multi-use room in the unused area, which could also be used as a courtroom when needed.

“We could utilize that space instead of acquiring properties and remodeling other buildings,” Goodspeed said. He asked the board, “Do we want to use that space? Is there any type of service that we have something to think about?”

Commissioner Carl Zalak suggested that Goodspeed consult county courtroom personnel to find out percentages of use in the existing courtrooms.

Jeff Fuller, trial courts administrator-elect for the Florida Fifth District Court, responded to Zalak’s questions and other concerns about the court’s personnel and capacity.

“Right now, we have 17 courtrooms and 21 judicial officers,” he said. “So, we already don’t have enough courtrooms to cover all the people who could use the courtrooms on any given day. We use hearing rooms to handle things that maybe could be in the courtroom, and we are always asking for more judges. I think we sent some numbers over earlier this week showing that our civil judges have over 2,000 cases on their dockets. Our criminal judges have at least 1,000 cases on their dockets.”

Fuller added that a number of senior judges don’t have their own courtrooms and that Marion County has a high number of circuit court filings. “So, if there’s going to be a new circuit judge, it will be in Marion County,” he noted noted.

Goodspeed proposed that the 25-year comprehensive study include updates, revisiting the objectives every three to five years “because a lot of things change — policies, laws, leadership, economy.”

Topping off the facilities management portion of the workshop, Julie Sieg, Marion County’s public libraries director, presented to the board the budgetary needs for her office to serve library patrons in the growing Silver Springs Shores area. She displayed a chart showing Silver Springs Shores’ population at around 27,550 with 15,571 cardholders in the area code of 34472.

Sieg provided a chart outlining the costs of a new library in Silver Springs Shores ($8.5 million) using construction plans similar to public libraries in Belleview and Dunnellon; a new lease at the Heather Island Shopping Center ($860,000); or upgrading/adding onto the Silver Springs Shores Community & Youth Center ($439,000-$539,000).

A final option included a mobile unit ($645,000).

“I would pick the (Heather Island) commercial lease,” she said, “because of the high visibility of the space. … It is in a shopping center that is well-used.”

Sieg voiced reservations about the option of using the community and youth center that historically has been used for youth activities and for members of the MSTU (municipal services taxing unit) who pay for the structure.

“My concern is getting past the historic use and the members’ access,” she said, “so that folks who aren’t in the MSTU won’t even know that there’s a library there,” she said, adding that she hopes the library would serve everyone, not just MSTU members.”

On May 24, commissioners and County Attorney Matthew “Guy” Minter, County Administrator Mounir Buoyones; Tracy Straub, assistant administrator for Public Works and Growth Services; and County Engineer Elton Holland, reconvened for a follow-up discussion and brainstorming session that took place at College of Central Florida Webber Center.

Zalak proposed reviewing the community center possibilities, citing the success of the Mary Sue Rich Community Center in west Ocala, which includes a public library on the premises.