THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, November 15, 1994 TAG: 9411150298
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MANTEO LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Dare County has apparently narrowed to two the number of possible sites for its proposed government complex.
The sites are in downtown Manteo and near the Dare campus of the College of the Albemarle. Dare County Commissioner Clarence Skinner said town officials accept the choices.
The county is also talking with Manteo about a possible agreement on joint usage of the facility, as well as a possible consolidation of some city-county services.
County and town officials met for the first time last week to give Manteo officials an overview of the status of the project, and to seek input from the town, Skinner said.
``We invited town officials into the meeting to bring them up to date with the Capital Improvements Projects Committee's thinking, let them know where we are and to solicit input from town officials to see that we're working toward a common goal,'' Skinner said.
The county and town appear to be ``on the same track'' in terms of the new facility, he said.
``We had a great deal of agreement, no disagreement as a matter of fact,'' he said. ``The town officials seem to be pleased with where we're going, and we're very pleased with their attitude about where we're going.''
Skinner said the committee will include a town representative in future deliberations, for a number of reasons.
The town and county plan to dovetail their future needs to achieve efficiency. They might consolidate services provided by both to save money, Skinner said. The new facility will be built to meet specifications of the Americans with Disabilities Act; it also will be designed in keeping with the history of Roanoke Island and the town of Manteo, said Dare's public information officer, Charles Hartig.
The new facility will also save money for the county. It now pays some $329,637 annually in rents for office space in Manteo - or about $4.9 million over 15 years.
Building a new complex could could save $1.8 million over the same period, Hartig said.
A tax increase will not be necessary to fund the project, he said.
The committee plans to send out requests for architects' proposals on Sunday. Those proposals will be opened Dec. 16. The committee will choose three proposals, with interviews set for those selected on Jan. 27.
A recommendation will be made to the full board of commissioners on Feb. 6, with final award on Feb. 27. Construction is expected to begin in the summer.
County and town officials are expected to meet again within the next two weeks. by CNB