5 days ago
Commissioners commit $100K to renovate Mercer County Day Report Center
princeton — In the past, farmers would get together and help a neighbor erect a new barn, but a new take on this tradition is scheduled to take place today when the community gets together for a 'community shred.'
The Mercer County Day Report Center's attic is filled with old and outdated records and documents that can't be thrown into the trash, so volunteers are getting together and shredding them. Day Report Center Director Michelle Stewart said clearing out the attic is a step toward renovating a building that could be some 100 years old.
Located at 1422 E Main St. near the Mercer County Courthouse, the building stands near the site of Princeton's old hospital.
'As best we can understand, this building was here when the old hospital was present here on the corner,' Stewart said. 'It could be 100 years old. That's what I'm thinking, but I'm not 100% sure. Everyone has speculated this building was here at that time based on the fixtures. It has old galvanized pipes that have burst and damaged the walls. We've had two major flooding events.'
The building looks modern, but the exterior does not match the interior.
'The engineer that came through the building said it's like a decorative shell around a very old building,' Stewart said. 'We need enhanced [Americans with Disabilities Act] accessibility, new bathrooms, updated security and advanced entry control to provide security for the growing business that we have.'
The Center is an alternative sentencing program the courts can use for nonviolent individuals who need less institutional custody or jail. When including the people undergoing drug testing for other agencies, the Center works with around 300 people, Stewart said.
'We need to expand our treatment and supervision space to meet the needs of our large classes and improve our technology,' she said. 'We're a little behind.'
The Mercer County Commission voted on May 27 to provide $100,000 for the renovation project. Stewart said the hope is to find matching grants from local foundations.
County Commissioner Greg Puckett said members of the Mercer County Opportunity Workshop would help today with cleaning out and shredding the old files so renovations can get underway.
'The day report center is essential in managing our incarcerations,' he said. 'We really don't want to incarcerate people for a number of reasons.'
Having the center helps Mercer County reduce its monthly bill from the state's regional jail system, Puckett said. People in the day report system can provide labor for clearing trash from roadsides and doing other tasks for the community.
'It's a win-win for everybody,' he said.
The day report center's former facility, located on South Walker Street near the Mercer County Courthouse, once housed local offices for Appalachian Power. Puckett said some of its interior has been demolished to see if it can be used for other purposes. Creating offices for the county's dilapidated structures program, emergency services and litter control are among the possibilities.
Stewart said after the old documents have been cleared out, the hope is to get ventilation into the attic, then start demolishing parts of the building and renovating it. The plan is to keep space for the day report center while the work is underway.
'I have been here 18 years in both day report centers, so I'm excited to see this happen,' she said. 'I've been waiting for this a long time.'
Contact Greg Jordan at
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