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Committee approves Jamestown lease for Chautauqua County DSS and Mental Hygiene; staff say cost is budget neutral
Summary
The Chautauqua County Public Facilities Committee approved a Jamestown office-lease for the county Department of Social Services and Mental Hygiene on Nov. 10, with county finance staff describing the arrangement as budget neutral in the 2026 budget.
The Chautauqua County Public Facilities Committee on Nov. 10 approved a lease agreement with the City of Jamestown for office space to house the Chautauqua County Department of Social Services (DSS) and the Department of Mental Hygiene and Social Services.
Sam Zofoto, Deputy Director of Finance, told the committee the annual lease comes to "about 32,394 80" (stated in the record); Zofoto said DSS would be responsible for roughly half and Mental Hygiene for the other half. He explained there is a state grant contributing to the cost — recorded in the meeting as "53,414" — and that DSS overhead claiming at an estimated 62% would generate roughly $10,853; the local DSS share was described as approximately $4,124. "That is included in the 2026 budget already," Zofoto said, and he described the lease as budget neutral once those revenue streams are counted.
A committee member asked where the operations would be relocated from; commissioners said they know the destination but not the origin and staff said they would follow up with the Commissioner of Human Services to provide the origin. The committee also confirmed this is a resubmission of a resolution previously tabled.
The committee approved the resolution by voice vote.
No detailed lease terms (such as lease length or exact address) were provided during the discussion recorded in the transcript; staff said follow-up questions would be directed to Human Services or audit and control.
