Columbia County commissioners deny $436,000 grant for public safety complex design

Columbia County commissioners voted to decline acceptance of grant funds and stop contract negotiations for the design of a proposed public safety complex after members raised concerns about spending on design without construction funding.

County staff told the board the request related to RFQ 2025D asked the county to approve the ranking of firms and authorize negotiation with the top-ranked firm to design a public safety complex. Staff said the award involved roughly $436,000 in grant funding to design a complex, noting one number in the presentation appeared to be a typographical error.

The board debated whether to accept the grant. One commissioner said the county already has a completed emergency operations center (EOC) design and questioned spending a large grant to produce another set of plans when no construction funding is available. A county attorney confirmed the grant is fully funded and that unused funds can be returned to the granting agency, but staff warned that rejecting the grant would forfeit the money and it could not be reallocated to other county uses.

After discussion about workforce and sheriff recruitment pressures and the optics of accepting large planning grants when operational needs are unmet, a commissioner moved to deny the money. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.

The board did not approve contract negotiations for the RFQ following that vote. Commissioners and staff discussed that the county could revisit a project if construction funding becomes available in the future.