The Strafford County delegation voted to support a proposal allowing the cities of Dover, Rochester and Somersworth to construct and fund an emergency warming center on county-owned land, contingent on a pending public hearing and vote by the Dover city council.

Commissioner Nieves and other county officials described a multi-year intermunicipal effort to secure a permanent facility to provide emergency shelter during extreme weather. The cities would pay construction costs and operate the facility; the delegation’s vote approved the concept of using county property for the building and asked that the county not remove the site while the municipalities pay to construct and operate the center. Delegation members were clear that the delegation was not appropriating county money for construction but was giving an initial, conditional go-ahead for use of county land.

Members discussed procedural issues: Rochester and Somersworth had already voted in favor of the plan at recent municipal meetings, while Dover planned a public hearing. Delegation members asked that final approvals and any municipal funding commitments be completed before construction contracts are executed. Several members asked that construction proceed by a design-build or value-engineered RFP so municipalities could compare bids and that terms—insurance, operations, and long-term maintenance—be spelled out in written agreements before construction.

The delegation approved the conditional concept by roll call; the motion supporting county land use and permitting construction, contingent on Dover’s positive vote, passed (recorded 26–10). Delegation members asked county staff and municipal partners to pursue RFPs, formal intergovernmental agreements and operational plans and to return with any documents needing delegation approval.