Effingham County commissioners continue to mull where county offices might be located in the future.

Commissioners likely will hold a workshop soon to go over in greater detail and perhaps put together a master building plan. That plan is expected to include whether many county offices are scattered over several buildings or offices and agencies are located as close together as possible.

“It’s more of a vision than a goal or objective,” said county project manager Adam Kobek of the master plan. “It’s not a decision to put office ‘A’ in building ‘B’. It’s more of where we’re going for the future.

“It would be a road map to where we want to be and not take into account a time frame.”

Said Commissioner Verna Phillips: “I think we all want a master plan.”

Kobek said there are about five to seven offices that could use the Treutlen Building. Planning for improvements at the Treutlen Building is under way and the facility is awaiting occupants.

Other current construction projects are close to completion. The 911 multi-agency call center is scheduled to be finished before the end of the year, and the county extension building is projected to be finished in early December.

Improvements to the animal control office are finished, and contract negotiations are under way for the Egypt fire station.

The Effingham County Parks and Recreation department is planning the skate park at Sand Hill and a tennis complex at Baker Pond.

The commissioners, however, face questions on what to do with current buildings and those decisions may affect those plans.

“When it comes to making repairs to a building, what is the life expectancy of that building,” asked County Administrator David Crawley. “What are the plans for that building?”

Some of those questions pertain to the county’s annex on Highway 119 in Springfield. The annex, a former school building, is home to several county offices, including the tax commissioner and tax assessor.

“It’s a nice building, but it’s getting some age on it,” Kobek said. “The annex is at the point now where we need to make major renovations.”

The historic courthouse ad hoc committee also is being extended to February. More than 100 firms have requested pre-qualifying paperwork. The committee will start the request for proposals process and the interviews. Because of the impending holiday season and the time it may take to go through all the pre-qualifying applications, the committee asked to extend its deadline.

“The committee is working diligently,” Kobek said.

Kobek told commissioners that part of the thought process behind a possible master plan is if they want to have a campus of offices with “one-stop shopping” of county services.

“I feel we need to put a master plan together,” said Commissioner Hubert Sapp.

Sapp said the county still needs to decide what will go in the old courthouse once it’s renovated. He said he would like to see services that feed off each other put together.