County considers new judicial center

Santa Rosa County Board of CountyCommissioners has directed staff to work on cost estimates for a new judicial center in East Milton.

Commissioner Bob Cole brought up the issue during an Oct. 24 committee meeting and asked that the county develop a presentation or proposal for the purpose of informing the public about the concept. He suggested placing the idea on the ballot for the third time in 2012.

While Cole wanted to address the issue several weeks ago, he said he was asked by County Attorney Angela Jones and County Administrator Hunter Walker not to bring it up because of a pending lawsuit. However, the case has now settled.

“We know the judicial center we have now is dangerous and inadequate, it has health hazards,” Cole said. “We just paid out and approved an $800,000 settlement to a lady that was harmed there.”

Previous referendums to implement an additional 1 cent sales tax to pay for a new judicial center failed because it appeared as a wish list, according to Cole. He said commissioners needed to lay out a specific plan and explain the need for a new center so that the referendum would have a better chance of passing.

For more on this story, see the Nov. 3 issue of Navarre Press of subscribe online.