The Polk County Commissioners tasked Polk County staff with exploring the options for a new elevator in the Polk County Government Center this week after the existing elevator stopped working for the third time since the beginning of the year with individuals inside.
The elevator uses mechanical components that date back to the 1950s and Polk County Administrator Chuck Whiting says the county has to do something because they don’t want people getting stuck. “If you’ve been into the government center, you know we have one elevator,” said Whiting. “That elevator has now gone kaput three times so far this year with individuals inside. We’re concerned about that because sometimes it’s our own employees, sometimes it’s the public. We don’t want anybody getting stuck in an elevator. The elevator was used when it was put into the building. Or at least the mechanics of it which are from the 50s as best as we can tell and we can’t get it serviced anymore. We’re going to have to do something. We knew this day was going to come; just didn’t think it would happen the way it is.”
Two options are possible solutions. One includes replacing the current elevator for $170,000 and the second is to build a new elevator shaft and keep the old elevator for freight explained Whiting. “We went to the board with two alternatives,” said Whiting. “One is replacing the existing elevator, expensive about $170,000 and we would not have an elevator in the building for about a month and a half. The second option, which is the one the board said to pursue that one is to build a second elevator shaft right next to the shaft that we have because there is room for it. The thought is it’s $35,000 more, and if we can get the existing elevator working to some degree, we don’t have to face a period of time when we can’t get people from floor to floor.”
Regardless of which option is chosen, there will likely be code issues to consider says, Whiting. “There are some code issues that come into it with either option,” said Whiting. “If we take out the existing elevator we have to do a cleanout which is a federal requirement, which is expensive. We could avoid that by putting in a new elevator and trying to get the existing elevator to work. There may be some code issues on the other option with the new shaft because the building was built in the late 60s, so we’re not up to code on everything. That’s the one sticking point right now before committing to option two.”
The elevator is vital to Polk County’s daily operations with people needing to get to all three floors regularly. “There is ground level access on the ground and middle floor,” said Whiting. “The middle floor is the easiest one to get into and is handicap accessible. We’ve notified the departments if somebody is coming in, or if it’s an employee who has difficulty going up and down the stairs, we’ll make office space available to meet and make sure we serve our residents. The most foot traffic we get is on Thursdays when drivers license testing takes place, and that is on the third floor, only accessible by elevator or stairs. We’re trying to do what appears to be the best not only in the short term but in the long term. This is a priority now for the board to the public, and our employees can continue to do their work and get the services they need.”