After several months of discussion, DeKalb County Commissioners have decided to move the elections office out of the county courthouse.
DeKalb County Administrator of Elections Dustin Estes said the elections office will be moved into a space within the county complex. Estes said he requested to move the elections office six months ago and not everyone was initially on board for the move.
“There were some commissioners who felt like that space could be utilized for a different office,” Estes said. “But with the urgency of moving forward with security in the courthouse, we push forward. There was some rebuttal but in the end, there was a stronger argument that our office should be in that area.”
Estes said the portion of the county complex the elections office will move into is unfinished. Estes said the space will need to be completed before the elections office can begin the move.
“There will be some new walls put up, the ventilation will be finished, there is some work on the sprinkler systems, the floor will have to be finished, and then of course, new doors, new locks, and things like that,” Estes said.
Estes said there will likely be an adjustment period for DeKalb County residents once the move is complete. Estes said the elections office will do its best to notify people of the move.
“We will start notifying the public, we’ll do some notices, we’ll do signage and try to get ahead of it,” Estes said. “But of course, there’s those folks you can’t reach and they just find out when they find out.”
Estes said he hopes the county will bid out to complete the renovation this week to get the ball rolling. Estes said he hopes to be in the new office by the end of August.
