Public invited to Open House for new Allamakee County Public Safety Center this Saturday ...
Members of the general public are invited to an open house event this Saturday, May 20 celebrating completion of the Allamakee County Public Safety Center newly constructed throughout this past year at the former Makee Manor location about four miles north of Waukon along State Highway 9. The event is expected to begin with a dedication ceremony at 10 a.m. and will continue with tours of the new facility through 4 p.m. The current Allamakee County jail, sheriff's office and 911 dispatch center housed on the fourth floor of the Allamakee County Courthouse in Waukon will also be open to the public for tours this Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. as well in order for members of the public to note the differences between the jail facilities - many of them mandated by state and federal regulations, as well as the communications and dispatch center that serves as the hub of all emergency activity for the county. Inmates currently housed in the Allamakee County Jail will be transported elsewhere during Saturday's events so as not to be accessible during the tour event. Switch over of the County's 911 network to the new facility is scheduled to take place Tuesday, May 23.
It was just over two years ago, May 5, 2015, that voters in Allamakee County, with a 68.5% approval, passed a bond referendum not to exceed $5.1 million to construct a new public safety center that would replace the current Allamakee County jail, sheriff's office and 911 dispatch center that was originally constructed more than three quarters of a century ago in the early 1940s at the Allamakee County Courthouse. A groundbreaking ceremony was first held for the new facility April 19 of last year, about two months after the former Makee Manor building was demolished February 15, 2016.
Those attending the open house event are asked to use the building's main entrance, which is located at the northeast corner of the new facility, which would be to the very left but facing away from the direction of the photo above. The photo at left below shows that main entrance in more detail. Photos by Joe Moses.
