FARMINGTON -- County commissioners listened to options to relocate offices currently housed in the Franklin County courthouse.

This week, they began with a review of an opportunity to move to nearby Church Street Commons. Commissioners could negotiate a lease-purchase option with the building's owners for space to move an as-yet-undetermined number of personnel, including the Register of Deeds, county clerk, treasurer, and support staff. An alternative plan would move staff to the Franklin County Sheriff's Department building in Fairbanks. That option would require the dispatch office to move into the county's detention center.

Architectural firm Smith Reuter Lull has worked on plans for those two options. Moving to the county's existing sheriff's department building would involve a very different set of costs than a move to Church Street.

Smith and John Cleveland, a land use and planning consultant, suggested both options could have benefits and drawbacks. The Franklin County Courthouse needs a major overhaul of its three floors, with much of the work to be done when state money becomes available. Since the county offices are housed in a state building, the time to think about relocation is now, according to Cleveland.

"Because those opportunities (at the Church Street location) did not exist before, they present a unique chance to take a look and see if this would meet the county's needs," Cleveland said. "I'd be cautious about overly investing in the jail facilities."

A building committee has been meeting to consider the options, and one concern was the inaccessibility of county records if the offices move from the center of town.

The commissioners received a letter of support for the Church Street Commons location.

"Needless to say.... the basement has simply been inadequate and at times unsafe for county employees and others who work for our office," District Attorney Norman Croteau wrote. The move to the sheriff's department building could be completed within the county's budget, which requires any expenditure over $50,000 be presented to voters for approval.

In other matters, Franklin County Emergency Management Agency's director Tim Hardy and others will develop plans to address staffing problems in the event of a flu outbreak or weather emergency. Hardy asked commissioners to draft a letter of support to keep the county's dispatch system in Franklin County.