The walls of the Butler County Government Center in downtown Butler are closing in on the workers there, in a manner of speaking.

There's not enough storage space; cubbyholes have been turned into offices; some court-related functions need to be shifted to the office space next door in the tier parking garage.

It's the reason county commissioners have taken steps to build a new building or add to the existing one. Opened in 1991 and housing close to 500 employees, the government center and courthouse, attached by an elevated walkway, is ripe for expansion -- one way or another.

Commissioners

Pinkerton, Jim Kennedy and Jim Lokhaiser, agreed Oct. 21 to seek proposals for demolition of the old county jail adjacent to the government center to make way for more office space. The county hasn't decided yet whether to build a separate building or add to the existing one.

Demolition will be covered by about a half-million dollars remaining in a bond fund for the $35 million new prison. Proposals for the work are expected within a couple of weeks.

Mr. Pinkerton said he hopes the new space will be ready for occupancy by the time a lease for office space at the garage is up in four years. In the meantime, the county's adult probation office will be using that 8,000-square-foot space.

He said it's no surprise the county needs additional space; The original building was designed to accommodate 10 years of growth and is close to 20 years old.

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