Wyoming County is taking steps to reopen the former Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture building in Tunkhannock Township.

At a meeting on Jan. 28, county commissioners approved two contracts with Milnes Engineering to begin work on the property at 113 State Route 92 South.

The first contract, valued at $21,450, covers engineering work to develop specifications and bid out the demolition of the lower building. Damaged during Tropical Storm Lee in 2011, the lower building was never repaired, and commissioners determined that restoring it would be too costly. Milnes Engineering will manage the bidding process and oversee demolition.

The second contract, for $5,000, covers phase one of renovations to the main building, which will eventually house some county offices.

"When the preliminary work is completed, architecture work will be able to begin, and hopefully, then we can really get moving with that building," said Commissioner Rick Wilbur.

The county purchased the building in March 2022 for $125,000, with plans to relocate County Children & Youth Services and other domestic services from their current location at the Robinson Counseling Center on West Tioga Street. The new facility will provide significantly more space for these agencies.

According to county officials, the building has been used sparingly since 2011 and has remained completely vacant since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when state employees began working remotely.

County Approves Funding for Online Poll Worker Training

Commissioners also approved a $16,000 contract with Elect Sure to provide mandatory online training for poll workers before the May 20 primary election. The funding comes from the county’s Election Integrity Grant.

"In previous years, the training had been done in person, and it had become a problem trying to schedule it. Doing the training online is a way to ensure that all poll workers can attend," Wilbur explained. Wyoming County has 28 polling locations.

Wyoming County Reads Month Declared

Commissioners declared February as Wyoming County Reads Month. This year’s featured book is Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier. The full schedule of Wyoming County Reads events is available on the Dietrich Theater’s website.

Prison Board Updates

At the Wyoming County Prison board meeting, officials reported that the county jail currently houses 43 inmates—37 males and six females. Additionally, four females and one male are being boarded at other facilities at no cost to the county.

The jail is also accommodating 12 inmates from Sullivan County and two from Lackawanna County.

According to Warden Ken Repsher, staffing levels are stable, but the facility is actively looking to hire two to four full-time female corrections officers.

"We've had difficulties hiring female corrections officers for a couple of years now," Repsher noted.