Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
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204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
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A ribbon was cut Monday on the new social services building. Shown are (from left) city Mayor Kathy Lawson; Amy Tuttle, director of social services; Ben Meador, member of the agency’s board; and Debra Buchanan, chairman of the Henry County Board of Supervisors. |
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Tuesday, January 26, 2010
By MICKEY POWELL - Bulletin Staff Writer
Henry-Martinsville Social Services’ new location off Clearview Drive already is attracting statewide attention, according to Martinsville Mayor Kathy Lawson.
The upscale office building, formerly occupied by defense contractor Athena, now is owned jointly by the county and city. Social services moved into about 30,000 square feet of the building earlier this month.
The agency’s new home “will be the model” for local departments of social services in Virginia, Lawson said during an open house Monday night.
Government agencies statewide already are saying, “‘Look what happened in Martinsville,’” she said.
The floor space in the Clearview building is about 10,000 square feet more than social services had in its previous building on East Church Street, which also is owned by the two localities. That building had fallen into disrepair and was cramped, which made it hard for employees to keep their conversations with clients confidential, agency officials have said.
Employees now meet with clients in private rooms with doors, not at their cubicles.
With the new building, staff now has “a facility comparable to the quality of work they do,” said Debra Buchanan, chairman of the Henry County Board of Supervisors and the board’s Horsepasture District representative. She formerly served on the local social services board.
Ben Meador, chairman of that board, noted that the building has modern conveniences for employees and agency clients.
For instance, rest rooms have automatic commodes, faucets and soap and towel dispensers. Decorative granite floor tiles are in rest rooms and the building’s lobby, a tour of the building revealed.
Jane Toler of Martinsville, a visitor at the open house, said the building is “beautiful.”
“It’s a comfortable, efficient place for them (employees) to work,” she said.
Also, “it should improve customer morale,” said another visitor, Stephanie Hedrick of Collinsville.
Both Toler and Hedrick have family members who work for social services.
“We’ve had some very positive comments from the public,” agency Director Amy Tuttle said. She quoted one client who said, “You know what I like best about this building? The floors don’t creek.”
Meador mentioned that planning for an eventual move of social services — including studying possible new locations — began about six years ago.
Joyce Martin was the agency’s director then. During the open house, she said the new facility is “marvelous.”
“I never let down hope” that social services eventually would move into the building, said Martin, who retired in 2007. “I’m so happy they’re (employees) finally here. They deserve it.”
The new location has a good layout that “certainly will ... meet their needs,” said Martinsville Vice Mayor Kimble Reynolds Jr.
In late 2006, the county bought the former Athena building for $1.65 million and offered it for use by social services early the following year. The county then sold a 34 percent interest in the building to Martinsville for $561,000, and the city paid $238,000 of the estimated $700,000 cost of renovations that were needed.
City officials originally opposed using the building for a government agency, claiming it would take Martinsville’s best economic development tool off the market. They yielded after the county agreed to turn 153 acres in the Patriot Centre industrial park into sites for which the county and city will share revenues from companies eventually locating on them.
Both localities “had a mutual desire to see the agency succeed” in getting a suitable location — they just had to work out the details, Lawson said.
The county and city continue to market the unused 40,000 square feet of space in the building. |
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