Local law enforcement settling in at new temporary home

By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

The Ellis County Law Enforcement Center at 1205 Fort soon will be almost empty when the entire judicial department makes its move this weekend to join the Hays Police Department and the Ellis County Sheriff’s Offive at a temporary location at the former N.E.W call center building, 3000 New Way.

The HPD and the ECSO made their move over the weekend — a process Sheriff Ed Harbin said has been “hectic” but will be worth it in the end.

“It’s nice knowing when we move back to our other LEC that is going be something that is a lot more workable … and the added jail space will be nice,” he said.

The departments are moving to make room for renovations to the LEC expected to last approximately a year.

Ellis County Sheriff Ed Harbin shows of the jail at the temporary LEC building, 3000 NEW Way — Ellis County Sheriff Ed Harbin shows off the jail last week at the temporary LEC building, 3000 NEW Way.

Until then, the former N.E.W. building is now a maze of cubicles, with each department separated from the other.

The site has three holding cells where people who have been arrested will stay an average of three hours until being relocated to jails in other counties.

Harbin said his department’s fuel and transportation costs will definitely increase, noting his team has been shuttling inmates for nearly two weeks, sometimes spending 11 hours a day going from one county to another.

“We try to do everything in one big sweep. … If we take one to Trego County, to Ford or Graham counties, we try to do that all at one time,” he said. “However there will be exceptions if we take someone to Trego county … then within a day or so they are to bond out, so we have to pick them up again and bring them back so they can bond out.”

The temporary location off of Commerce Parkway and south of Old U.S. 40 has three courtrooms to be used for district court cases, and the district magistrate judges are holding municipal court in the Court Services Building, 1204 Fort.

The Rural Fire Director, IT Director and Dispatch Center will not be moving to the temporary site, instead staying in their current locations in the basement of the LEC during construction.

Harbin said there may “be some issues to work through” regarding dispatch and law enforcement officers not having as much face-to-face contact.

However, Harbin said so far everything is running smoothly — a tribute he says is due to the LEC employees.

“I can’t tell you enough good about theses guys,” he said. “They have taken care of business, haven’t grumbled … did what needed to be done..so it’s all worked well.”