Luzerne County Courthouse
                                 File photo

Luzerne County Courthouse

File photo

It was presented as a plan for Luzerne County to free up more than $300,000 in funds for human services programs — stop leasing space in another structure and consolidate offices under one roof in a county-owned building.

Now the county is reversing course, with council set to discuss a new five-year lease of the space the administration had planned to vacate.

Human Services Fiscal Officer Adam Wiernusz had informed council of the lease vacating plan at an Oct. 11 work session.

More human services workers were able to work remotely during the coronavirus pandemic, particularly caseworkers already on the road reviewing cases 75% of the time, Wiernusz said. After speaking about remote working with other counties, the division determined caseworkers could prepare their paperwork from home and not have to come into the office as often, he said.

This development coincided with the expiration of a lease the end of this year for space near the county-owned human services building at 111 N. Pennsylvania Ave. in Wilkes-Barre, he said. Management viewed this as an opportunity to examine whether offices could be consolidated at the county-owned building, ending the need for the lease, he said.

“After much review and deliberation, we determined that yes we in fact can do that and make it work,” he told council, on Oct. 11, noting the division was starting the process of rehousing staff from the rented facility.

In mid November, more specifics on the money that would be freed up were highlighted during the human services budget presentation.

The Area Agency on Aging reported an anticipated $50,000 reduction in rent due to the tentative plans to vacate its leased space. Children and Youth representatives said the hybrid work model would allow them to cut rent approximately $244,000 and reduce security by $35,000. These numbers were factored into both budgets.

The savings, largely from state and federal funding, were redirected to programs, compensation and training, prior county manager Randy Robertson had said. The county contributes $6.9 million toward Children and Youth, which has a proposed $46.6 million budget. No county funding is required for the Aging Agency’s proposed $14.2 million budget.

Lease details

Why the about-face? The human services administration could not be reached for comment on the reasons the division is now seeking a new lease for five more years.

The two leased spaces are in the “McCarthy Building” at Union and State streets in Wilkes-Barre, according to the work session agenda submission.

As it stands, the five-year lease with McCarthy Realty will cost $354,365.04 annually and contain three years of additional optional renewals, it said.

The final lease contract was not attached to the agenda because it is still under negotiation, the law office said.

The submission identifies two alternatives to a lease renewal: find another facility to lease or consolidate existing office space at 111 N. Pennsylvania Ave. by “permanently converting the majority of human services staff to a remote/hybrid work schedule.” With the latter option, any associated cost savings would be reallocated to program services.

Council had approved the last lease with McCarthy Realty in February 2018. The agenda from that meeting states the monthly rent increased to $26,191.60 in 2021, which equates to $314,299.20 annually.

That means the new proposed lease, as described in the agenda, would be $40,066 more per year.

In total, the county leases 21,884 square feet in the McCarthy Building for the Aging Agency and Children and Youth, the last renewal said.

Because the lease is on Tuesday’s work session for discussion only, the lease would not take effect unless council votes Thursday.

Tuesday’s work session follows a 6 p.m. voting meeting at the county courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre, with instructions for remote attendance posted under council’s online meetings link at luzernecounty.org. Thursday’s voting meeting also starts at 6 p.m. in the same place.

County Controller Walter Griffith said Monday he noticed the five-year lease on the agenda and wants a convincing explanation on why the county is not proceeding with the consolidation plan that had been stated publicly.

At minimum, Griffith argued the county should only consider a short lease, preferably month-to-month. Even if a five-year lease allows either party to cancel at any time, settling in to a new agreement could take away the impetus to act on consolidation, he said.

“I think there’s more than enough space in the county-owned building. This thing could end up on the back burner for five years,” Griffith said.

He also foresees an argument that the expense would have little impact on the general fund, with only a partial county contribution required for Children and Youth.

“If we’re going to look for cost-saving measures, then let’s look at cost-saving measures,” Griffith said. “Taxpayer money is taxpayer money.”

Since the lease elimination was factored in the proposed budget, someone will have to identify which expenses in the Children and Youth and Aging Agency must be altered to compensate for the additional expense if the lease is approved.

Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.