A comprehensive structural site assessment of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office headquarters in Wiscasset indicates the building needs almost $7.5 million in necessary repairs and renovations.
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners received the report at its meeting on March 19.
In 2023, the commissioners hired the Portland firm Gale Associates Inc. to do the comprehensive assessment of the building to help determine the viability of maintaining the facility with repairs and renovations versus constructing a new facility on different property.
On March 19, Gale Associates building consultant Arno Skalski updated the commissioners, outlining the serious issues with the building and the work required to bring the building up to code. The scope of the work outlined in the report totals $7,487,174, Sklaski said.
The identified issues include moisture intrusion, serious masonry issues, and windows warped, weathered, and worn, according to Skalski. The roof has punctured membrane, open seam voids, buckled and cupping insulation, and the shingles are weathered, worn, loose, broken, and missing.
Geotechnical subsurface tests were performed by taking several boring samples. Based on the results of the soil samples, factors other than subsurface conditions could be contributing to the building damage, Skalski said.
Skalski also identified structural issues throughout the building, including cracked wood joists, subfloor sheathing problems, cracked concrete flooring and a cracked and leaning retaining wall. The cooling systems conflict with the heating zones creating energy deficiencies, Skalski said.
Other issues with the building include interior architectural problems, corridor widths, door approach clearances, wheelchair maneuverability, security issues, other damages to the building, and the electrical system is outdated.
According to the report, the hazardous building materials identified within the building materials inventory report, should be properly removed and disposed of by a licensed abatement contractor prior to the demolition or renovation of the building.
Questioned on the cost of different scenarios to correct the problems, Skalski said the assessment did not evaluate potential solutions.
“We did not analyze alternate approaches to the issue,” he said.
The commissioners did not take action on the question of bringing the current building up to code or to building a new facility, at a location and cost to be determined.
According to Lincoln County Administrator Carrie Kipfer, both options are on the table, and both options will be considered very closely.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office building was originally built and used as a filling station. The county purchased the former filling station property in 1980 and converted it into the sheriff’s office in 1985.
