Douglas County Commissioner Shannon Reid

I’m glad to be here with you today. It is indeed a momentous one, for a capital project designed to help strengthen much of the critical infrastructure that Douglas County residents interact with, and rely on, constantly ... it will for decades and generations to come. There are several hundred people whose jobs live in or revolve around the activities that happen here. There are many thousands of people’s lives that have been altered because of this place. 

I am one of those people. I’ve known this place for over 30 years now. I asked to speak today because I have a personal perspective on how much presence and impact this building has in our community – the impact that both these places will have well into the future now. Well-planned county infrastructure projects focus on how to better serve the public over time – with better access, universal design, safety, and wayfinding as central components of it all. I’m proud to be a commissioner who helped usher those values forward in the last few planning stages that brought us to this moment. 

It’s kind of a wild story to tell my kid self. 

I was 8 years old when I came to the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center for the first time, upstairs in the old Lawrence Police Department and also in Judge Shepard’s courtroom; it’s a memory I’ll carry for the rest of my life. It was tragic, a child was killed, families were abruptly torn apart in lots of different directions. I came back to this place many times in the years that followed that winter for one thing or another that someone who I loved was involved in. I can recall moments of feeling a deep belief in, and hope for justice, for safety ... and I can also recall plenty of moments of deep fear, distrust in what was to come as a result of new court orders. The reality is both things – often many things – were true at once. As an advocate for other abuse survivors now, I still come to this place all the time to do my job in the hallways, offices, and courtroom benches – to hold space for some of the folks in our community navigating their trauma in a public space. 

While it’s certainly true that not everything that happens in this building is so heavy, there are joyful moments such as weddings, adoptions, and name changes as well as core county functions that reside in the building like our IT team - and so much more that happens right here right now, but it just felt like an important occasion today to highlight the fact that indeed many life-altering things happen here, for so many people, all of the time. 

The first time I ever truly interacted with this place, in fact, would’ve been by making calls to 911 as a young kid. I never knew where the people were who answered my calls and sent immediate help for my mom, but I do now. They’ve been making the literal most of their modest “top floor suite” for a long time and dispatching emergency first responders to folks all over the county when they need it most - all from up there in those tight quarters. Every day, I’m so grateful for the continuity of services that our Douglas County Emergency Communications Center delivers, and I am proud that this project expanded to prioritize the need for more modern, weather-hardy, and secure facilities to house critical dispatch operations – services needed 24-7-365 by our residents.

 Alongside them, Emergency Management will soon be able to leverage those same features at the Public Safety Building for their critical mobilization during major incidents and natural disasters that they will need to respond to in generations to come. As this project progresses, I look forward to figuring out with our Sheriff’s Office how best to plan for their future operations here also – which encompass much more than jail and patrol. I hope this foundational space will enhance all their functions, security, and yes even everyone’s budgets. 

Part of our job as commissioners now is to help plan well for the future elected officials and administrators who will serve Douglas County well after many of us here today have closed our current chapter of work. I believe that we’ve worked diligently and thoughtfully throughout this long road to groundbreaking day, and I’m glad for the progress we’re making on behalf of local residents. 

As we celebrate the start of building, may we all stay grounded in the many truths of what brings us here today, what brings others here day after day, and why we do the work that we do – whatever it may be. 

Public service comes in many forms; it’s always an honor to be in the company of so many who do the work every day. 

As a quick matter of fact for us all to remember today – this project will be disruptive, quite obviously, and it will include sacrifice from everyone over time – and yet, I believe it’s a necessary and critical project for our community, one I hope advances critical infrastructure in meaningful ways for the public we all serve. 

So, thank you in advance for helping folks navigate these changes with grace and patience as we all move through the phases of construction.

 And thank you very sincerely for taking time today, for adjusting your calendar if you had to, and for gathering out here in winter to reflect with me on the reality of how places like these, people like you, change people’s lives every day in one way or another.

Chief Judge James McCabria

I am honored to be here representing the judges of Douglas County District Court. I started as a judge 10 years ago. I recall my first judge’s meeting, and I remember that the idea of this remodel was on the agenda then. In all years since, discussion of how and what was needed to serve the future needs of the community slowly coalesced into the project that we are here to commemorate today.
The many meetings where we discussed this project were useful in many ways, but they also prompted me to remind myself that, every day, people come into the Judicial Center who are having their first time experience. Whether they are dealing with issues that will have life-changing impacts for them, or to fulfill their obligation of jury duty, or to watch and see how a case is handled for someone or something they care about. What they encounter when they walk into this building creates their first impression of the legal system and what happens here.
Does the space reflect to people that what happens here is important? Is it organized with a sense of priority and importance? Is the space open to all or does it create barriers for some? Do people feel safe? Do they feel rushed?
This process also prompted thinking about the day-in, day-out operations that keep the court functioning. Does the design convey to a clerk or probation officer that what they are doing is important and part of a bigger picture? Do they feel protected or does the layout distract with the thought that one’s safety is being compromised? Are departments arranged in a way that serve both the public and the staff? All of these ideas and so much more were all considered as part of this process.

On behalf of the court, I would like to express sincere appreciation to the county commissioners who gave their time and attention to this process. It was no small task. The number of agencies, offices and departments that operate in or in collaboration with the district court is more than many realize. 
More than once, I was impressed with the thoughtful approach of commissioners who took the time to ask questions, identify needs, to gain understanding of who would be impacted by what happens inside this building.   
It is exciting to think of the day this project will be complete. Getting to that point will have impacts – limited parking, probably some days where the noise or some other necessary action may affect how, when or where we do our work. 
But, I want to assure the parties and their attorneys who will be appearing here while that work is happening that all of us – judges and staff - will work to minimize those impacts. The importance of being heard and having cases fully considered will remain the priority.
We will do our best to plan ahead and communicate but we will also welcome input and feedback as we move forward. Let me offer my appreciation now for patience and understanding for those occasions when we have to make those adjustments. 
This expansion looks to the future. To the function and administration of the law in this county not just today but for future generations. It is a reflection that this Court and this Community recognize the value of providing a place where the intersection of law into people’s lives occurs in an environment that can best support and promote the highest ideals of the judiciary for the people that it serves.
 

Undersheriff Stacy Simmons

I appreciate the opportunity to speak on behalf of Sheriff Jay Armbrister today.  My name is Stacy Simmons, and I am your undersheriff.  
I would first like to start by thanking Commissioner Shannon Reid, Commissioner Karen Willey, Commissioner Patrick Kelly, and County Administrator Sarah Plinsky for having the foresight to see this project as a necessity, and the courage among some opposition to fund it.  
I would also like to thank Treanor and JE Dunn for the work they have put in over the past several years and the coming years on this project.  This building will house the future of Douglas County government for decades to come.
I am going to take a little bit of a different approach with my words today and talk about the historical context of what this building means to me, the Sheriff and employees that have come before us.  
For reference, in 1863 President Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg address.  Eight years before this speech, the territorial governor of Kansas appointed and swore in the first sheriff of Douglas County to provide services to its residents.
The building beside me known then and now as the “courthouse” held one courtroom and all government services.  Next to the courthouse was the Sheriff’s Office and jail. The Sheriff lived on the premises and his wife did the laundry and fed those staying inside the jail.  When deputies were needed, a blinking call box on the street would alert them to call the sheriff’s office to receive information they needed.  They would go to the location from the box. The Sheriff was responsible for all emergencies, code enforcement, dispatch, and everything else that came up. His job was to keep peace and keep the jail.
For decades these two buildings stood as government service, and they held steady.  At some point, the beautiful courthouse and the tiny Sheriff’s Office could no longer provide the expected services by the citizens as county and city governments grew.  
Change came. Rolls were redefined, space was allocated, new departments were added and this building behind me was constructed in 1970 to provide services, and it did just that. 
It housed a new jail, Sheriff’s Office, Lawrence Municipal Court, records, the Lawrence Police Department, many more courtrooms, dispatch and so much more. 
When it opened, the Sheriff’s Office was provided the northwest corner of this building.  The Sheriff’s actual office is in the very corner and has been called the “corner office” since the first chair was moved in.  It may be the only office in the building that has not ever changed its occupant. But inevitably, change was again coming.  
Sheriff Armbrister and I both started our careers here in 1998.  We were hired to work at the “new jail” opening in 1999 because the one on the second floor of this building was being shut down.  The open space it was leaving behind provided dispatch and emergency management their own space as these centers were greatly needed. 
Eventually the Sheriff and I, through different career paths, made it back to this building.  He now sits in the “corner office” with my office next to his. We have the same view of those that occupied the offices before us. These windows have a direct line of site to the beautiful old courthouse and the grassy area that held the beginnings of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office 170 years ago.  It is humbling and difficult at the same time because we know the historical significance of this space and feel a great sense of pride and connection to these buildings and the citizens that have been served here.  
But just as the old courthouse outgrew its ability to provide necessary services to our citizens, so has this building. 
So, starting today, change comes again.  A new building, the Public Safety Building, will house the Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management Department, and the Emergency Communications Center.  We will all be starting a new chapter, a new legacy for future generations of public safety professionals who will ensure the citizens of Douglas County will receive the crucial services they expect and deserve.   
It will, however, be just a little farther down the road from this new building, sitting next to the Douglas County Correctional Facility where the Sheriff, who is still required by statute, to keep the peace and keep a jail will have a new line of sight from his corner office window.
Thank You.