Columbus could approve $16 million deal for new sheriff’s office headquarters

The City of Columbus could spend an estimated $16 million to purchase and renovate a downtown property to give the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office a new headquarters.

Deputy City Manager Pam Hodge told Columbus Councilors Thursday that the city is negotiating with TSYS to purchase a vacated property at 1000 5th Avenue, and councilors could vote on the deal as soon as its next meeting on Aug. 23.

The building would cost an estimated $2.5 million, and the renovations would cost another $13 million. Under the city’s preferred financing method, roughly $3 million in funding would come from Other Local Option Sales Tax public safety reserves and $13 million from Columbus Building Authority Bonds. The city could also fund the entire purchase through building authority bonds, Hodge said.

The roughly 77,000-square-foot building would house the department’s executive management, internal affairs, special projects, human resources, patrol services and various other groups.

The property includes 125 parking spaces, and the building comes with furniture, city officials said. The building is also adjacent to the jail and directly across the street from the public safety building.

“We even have an opportunity to have an additional courtroom in this building,” said City Manager Isaiah Hugley. “This building presents so many opportunities for us and for the sheriff. And the price is right.”

The sheriff’s administrative offices need a new home, said Hodge.

The city is preparing to demolish the Government Center — their current home — to build a new courthouse. The administrative offices could have been added to the planned judicial center, but it was ultimately removed from the $400 million Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) projects approved by voters in November. The department’s court-related personnel will remain at the courthouse, she said.

They aren’t the only ones moving. City administrative offices will be moved to properties along 12th Street, First Avenue and Broadway that once belong to Synovus. The $50 million deal to purchase and renovate the offices was approved by the Columbus Council in September 2021.

There were two options to house sheriff administration — construct a new site at the jail or purchase an existing property. Buying proved to be cheaper as a new building at the jail site would cost the city an estimated $21 million, Hodge said.

If the deal is approved, the sale would close in September and bonds would be issued in October. Renovations would take six to nine months. The department could move in sometime next summer, Hodge said.

“It (would) be the first time in the history of the office of the sheriff that we’ve been in a stand-alone building,” Sheriff Greg Countryman told the Ledger-Enquirer. “This would be great for us. ... We can put all command staff in one area. That’s going to make things a lot better for us.”