Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Defender Office Lease topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County amends Dunkirk lease to add 1,080 sq ft for Public Defender at same rent rate
Summary
The committee approved an amendment to the county's lease with the City of Dunkirk to add about 1,080 square feet adjacent to existing space for the Office of the Public Defender; funding for fit-out was said to be grant-supported.
The Audit Control Committee on April 17 approved an amendment to the county’s lease with the City of Dunkirk to increase office space for the Chautauqua County Public Defender by roughly 1,080 square feet at the same negotiated per‑square‑foot rent as the existing five-year lease.
Assistant Public Defender Derek Gregory and Assistant Deputy Director of Public Facilities Josh Rothwell explained that the office’s current space accommodates about five employees but the public defender staff has grown to nine or ten. The additional space is adjacent to the existing office and will include a conference room in the amended layout provided by Dunkirk city engineers.
County staff said the city provided scale drawings and that the county’s buildings-and‑grounds staff would verify measurements before finalizing the amendment. Committee members clarified that prior resolutions to lease alternative space were revised because of competing claims to the originally proposed rooms; county officials said no county staff or departments had erred in the process — the city revised the availability.
The committee approved the lease amendment on a voice vote. County staff said the additional space would be funded with grant dollars (referred to in the meeting as “grama grant funding”) and that the county does not plan to add an extra headcount for this change at present.
