Financial Education

The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office is now aiming for a 2028 move-in date to a new facility at the former Evergreen Subaru on Center Street. The Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office has been operating out of its Turner Street location for more than 150 years. Sheriff Eric Samson says the current conditions are unsuitable for their day-to-day operations. Handicap accessibility, limited parking, and the lack of appropriate space to meet with suspects, victims or their families are all on the sheriff’s list of concerns. The building right now doesnt meet security measures for staff, let alone the air quality. Theres no HVAC,” Samson said. “We have patrol officers in the basement; it often has water issues.The county purchased the building on Center Street with the idea to convert the 8,000-square-foot building that is already there and add an additional 15,000 square feet. In 2022, Auburn’s city council rejected those plans, approving a 180-day moratorium. At that time, then-mayor Jason Levesque said, “Not only are we protecting Auburn, were also protecting all the taxpayers throughout Androscoggin County to make sure their substantial investment is actually appropriate and a smart investment for everybody.”In the months since that moratorium ended, the city of Auburn has updated its zoning, planning, and permitting process. The sheriff said Harriman Associates, the architecture firm hired for the project, is confident its designs will meet the city’s criteria. Harriman Associates did not respond to the requests for an interview with Maine’s Total Coverage. The Androscoggin County commissioners will now review the renovation and construction plans before considering a bond. Commissioner Garrett Mason, who represents District 4, explained it has been more than a year since the commissioners last reviewed the plans.He said, “The commission will debate how we move forward and what revisions can we make to make it more acceptable to the taxpayer, because, at the end of the day, its really their money and we are making a generational change for the county.Commissioner Mason told Maine’s Total Coverage he does not think the project should be done in one major overhaul, and he believes there are other pools of money to pull from before agreeing on a bond. If the commissioners do decide a bond is the best way forward, they will have to call on the budgeting committee, hold public hearings, and get the bond on a ballot. Should Androscoggin County voters approve that bond, the sheriff says it will take two to three years to finish building and move to the new spot.Both Sheriff Samson and Commissioner Mason said a bond for this project would not be on the ballot in November 2024.