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Officials revealed at a Sept. 4 Legislature meeting that the 60-year-old building, which has been closed since late May, will be closed another two years so that asbestos-containing vermiculite deposits throughout it can be abated. (Think highly paid workers in space suits.) The deposits were discovered after heavy rain and roof damage the building sustained during a January windstorm.聽

Meanwhile, the county will continue to lease office space. At the same meeting, the Legislature voted 7-4 to lease the concrete bank聽at 63 Genesee St. in Auburn for $29,005 a month for two years, with an option for another five. It will cost an additional $1.1 million, half of which is eligible for state and federal reimbursement, to set up the Department of Social Services and treasurer's office there.

The abatement plan, the lease and the millions of dollars they will cost should not have come as such a surprise to the public. But they did.聽

We believe the county should instead have reviewed its options before the full Legislature, which represents the people, as well as the taxpayers who will ultimately be paying the bills. It had many options, particularly when it came to leasing and locating office space. But such a review should also have been situated within the bigger context of the building's long-discussed future.

Suggestions have included a new office campus on聽County House Road in Sennett, new offices in the parking lot of the current building, or moving county operations to Fingerlakes Mall or another rental property. In the last two years, however, two firms have said renovating the current building is the county's best option. The more recent recommendation came with an estimate of $52 million.聽

Renovation may be the best option. But we're not sure where those plans stand today, after the roof damage and vermiculite, and the closures they've caused. That's why now is an opportune time to examine Cayuga County's operations from top to聽bottom, with an emphasis on finding the best methods of delivering services to its 75,000 residents in the most financially sound manner possible.

Legislature Chairwoman Aileen McNabb-Coleman said in March 2021 that the county's long-term financial planning would benefit from a similar examination of its buildings and services.聽

"We're looking at a reimagined county government, with a focus on our residents and how they receive services, how our county will continue to deliver the highest quality of services and how county government can be more effective and efficient," she said. "Set the stage for a welcoming, accessible, efficient work space for the public as well as our employees for over the next 60 years."

Unfortunately, we believe, the county squandered an opportunity to do that by not involving the public whatsoever in its latest decision on the future of its operations.