APPLING — The final beam of the new Columbia County Sheriff’s Office Administration Building was set into place Wednesday, May 25 at a topping ceremony .
The new three-story, 28,000-square foot building will alleviate overcrowding in the current administration building, according to Sheriff Clay Whittle.
“The immediate need and relief is the overfilled offices we have now,” said Whittle. “The office space we have now is double or triple occupied.”
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Funded by the Special Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax, the $6 million facility is being built by SD Clifton Construction.
“Clifton Construction is pleased not only to build in Columbia County, but for Columbia County,” said CEO of Clifton Construction Rob Clifton during the topping ceremony.
Clifton said this project is important and that his company is excited to be part of it.
“We got a great standing relationship with Columbia County; we’ve done multiple projects and our goal to always have a project going with Columbia County,” he said. “This is a large project for us, and we’re very excited to be a part of it and happy we’re able to add it to our portfolio, along with we feel will be able to give the county a very nice building at a great price.”
Not only does the building meet a current need, but it should meet future needs as the county grows.
“We needed this because this county is one of the fastest growing counties in Georgia and our sheriff’s office has been growing at a very close pace, said Whittle. “This will allow us growth for the next 10 to 15 years minimum.”
The new building is expected to be finished by December 2022.
