YOUNGSTOWN - Plans for the future new government building were discussed Thursday at the Mahoning County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Last month, county commissioners and the Western Reserve Port Authority (WRPA) entered an agreement that would demolish the former Eastern Gateway building on East Federal Street and begin designing the new centralized Mahoning County Government Center in its place.

The current Board of Elections building located on Oak Hill Avenue is in need of repairs, so commissioners sought out to find a new location, which they want to be on the Eastern Gateway property.

However, Mahoning County Board of Elections Chairman Dave Betras said at the commissioners meeting that they need to have a standalone building to meet certain security requirements.

"We are not moving to downtown Youngstown. We are an independent board. We do not work for you. We work for the residents of Mahoning County," Betras said.

The Board of Elections current building has had multiple water leaks in recent months, and Betras said another leak occurred recently.

Betras told commissioners he fears that if leaks keep happening, someone could get seriously injured.

"You have known that the Board of Elections is an inadequate building, subject to catastrophic building failure...It's just a matter of time before someone is critically injured in that building because it is going to fail," Betras said.

Additionally, Betras said the board is ready to take legal action against the commissioners if necessary.

"The board is on the verge of hiring a lawyer to sue the county commissioners to do your job. We need a building," said Betras.

More on the current landscape of planning and moving the county government center can be found in our related coverage below.

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