County Legislature meets for final time in historic building before move to new site
Photos by Tom Rivers: The Orleans County Legislature is shown on Wednesday during its meeting in the legislative chambers on the top floor of the County Clerks Building. The group next month will be at a new meeting room with about double the space.
Lynne Johnson, chairwoman of the County Legislature, reviews a resolution during Wednesday’s meeting.
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature is heading to “the hill.” The 7-member Legislature had its final meeting in the historic County Clerk’s Building on Wednesday.
The Legislature has been meeting there since 1982. Prior to that, the Legislature and the former Board of Supervisors, met in a first floor courtroom in the County Courthouse.
The Legislature is headed to the new addition on the County Administration Building. That $10 million project is nearly complete. A ribbon-cutting and open house is scheduled for 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on June 11.
The 23,000-square-foot addition will include a larger meeting room for the Legislature (an increase from 30 seats to 60). There will also be offices for the legislative staff, the Health Department, Board of Elections and information technology department.
The building is connected to the current County Administration Building with the addition on the south side. The current CAB includes the Department of Social Services, Job Development, Tourism, Planning and Development, Office for the Aging, Department of Motor Vehicles, and Personnel.
The building at 14016 Route 31 West is located on a hill behind the nursing home.
County Legislator Bill Eick noted on Wednesday the group was meeting for the final time in the Courthouse Square, which is named to the National Register of Historic Places.
“There’s a lot of history in these walls,” Eick said.
The space on the top floor of the Clerk’s Building will likely be used by the Public Defender’s Office, which is getting an infusion of money from the state more than $1 million annually. The Public Defender will likely be adding staff.
The meeting room could also be used for arraignments or pre-trial services.
