Trumbull County and health board explore sale of Cortland health‑board building to house 911 center

County commissioners and the Trumbull County Board of Health held an exploratory meeting about a possible county purchase of a Cortland building now owned by the health board and the idea of moving the county 911 center into the building.

The discussion focused on whether the county should lease the unused second floor (about 6,600 square feet) or buy the building outright, potentially using opioid‑settlement funds to fund a purchase. "Why don't we just buy the building instead of renting the building?" the record indicates Commissioner Bernard proposed, according to comments recorded in the meeting.

Bill Danso of the prosecutor's office framed the legal issues: some intergovernmental leasing processes omit boards of health, which meant the county had to treat lease options as competitive bids; he said the county and health board should discuss what a long‑term arrangement would look like but that final decisions would require the respective boards. Danso also advised that purchase of real property generally does not require competitive bidding and that price and terms would be a matter for the two public bodies to agree on.

County representatives said they moved into the building within months of purchase and have occupied the first floor and most of the basement for about two years. They noted the county has capacity to provide maintenance and staffing if it owned the building and said ownership could avoid continued renovation spending on an older facility. One county speaker estimated the move would add roughly 30 employees to the Cortland footprint.

The health board said it can provide the figures commissioners requested — purchase price, renovation costs to date, and remaining liabilities, including a house and garage on an adjacent parcel that likely would need demolition and additional parking. "We can tell you what we paid for it, what we have in renovations, and what liability is left," a health board representative said.

Health board member John Messer Smith raised maintenance and safety concerns about the building, saying, "The front steps of this building are crumbling," and asked whether that reflected the county's maintenance standards. County officials acknowledged maintenance issues, said repairs had been discussed with maintenance staff, and suggested the county could assign a dedicated facilities person or otherwise restructure maintenance responsibilities if ownership changed.

Participants discussed operating costs: the electric bill was put at roughly $22,000, and combined utilities and maintenance were estimated around $50,000 per year. The health board noted it currently holds separate contracts for landscaping, HVAC, cleaning and elevator maintenance.

Next steps recorded on the record were procedural and concrete: the health board agreed to take the potential sale back to its seven‑member board and return with a price and any concerns; commissioners said they would then enter formal negotiations or direct legal counsel to draft terms. A procedural motion to record next steps was made and seconded on the record (the transcript does not specify the exact motion text); roll‑call votes recorded in the transcript show the motion carried with 'yes' votes recorded for speakers labeled in the transcript as 'Super Howard', 'Superloy', and 'Mister Hernandez.'

No formal purchase agreement or price was recorded during the meeting; the health board has not yet presented a sale price and has not committed to selling. The next procedural step is for the health board to return with a pricing and liabilities package for commissioners to consider.