Arguments that the Trumbull County coroner and his office staff have made about

their need for new office space appear to be sound.

The 1,400-square-foot Warren office, located in a county building above the Trumbull County Board of Elections offices, requires a trek up steep, narrow stairs. The space is cramped and lacks storage. Its conference room doubles as a break room, blood-

specimen holding area and houses the heating and cooling system.

The space also has no appropriate meeting space to consult families about the deaths of their loved ones, the coroner said.

Certainly, this does not sound ideal.

In response, Coroner Lawrence D’Amico proposes the county commissioners consider the purchase of a $250,000 building located near Trumbull Regional Medical Center. The hospital houses the county morgue.

Likewise, however, alternate options proposed by Commissioner Niki Frenchko likely would be less expensive than the purchase or lease of a new location and possibly more reasonable. Frenchko recently suggested the possibility of modifying the existing space by renovating a first-floor storage room to add a conference room and adding a chairlift for easier access up the stairs.

Frenchko says she believes the county should concentrate first on maintaining its current buildings before looking to add more buildings. She also argues that government occupancy of available buildings eliminates opportunities for potential, tax-paying private business from using the space.

We suspect this won’t be the last time we will hear discussions about the county’s physical plant and facilities.

Indeed, with millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief funds soon to arrive in the Trumbull County coffers, we won’t be surprised if new requests start showing up in the near future from other county department heads about their needs, in hopes of winning over funds for capital improvements or other desired purchases.

We aren’t sure if D’Amico’s request for commissioners to consider this relocation is the right answer. Let’s not forget the Trumbull County coroner’s office for many years was located in an East Market Street doctor’s office near the hospital before relocating around 2009. That rent-free location may have been inexpensive and convenient, but its availability ended, leading to the coroner and office staff’s move to the current Youngstown-Warren Road location.

We also do not know if the suggestions offered by Frenchko are feasible. That’s why both these suggestions, and possibly other options, need to be explored in their entirety.

For now, Frenchko proposes placing a moratorium on building purchases. Her motion to do that failed, though, when fellow commissioners Mauro Cantalamessa and Frank Fuda did not second it. Later, they said a moratorium on buying buildings didn’t make sense, and that they would support a

purchase only after reviewing the information, weighing it and deciding whether it’s a good deal.

Frankly, we see nothing wrong with placing a temporary hold on the purchase of any new buildings to give everyone involved an opportunity to do some homework without unneeded pressure.

Most of all, though, we encourage a spirit of cooperation and openness in this process.

We urge all three commissioners, along with the county coroner, to engage in lengthy and transparent discussions and due diligence about the issues involving the office space.

Commissioners must have time to explore their options, do their research and ensure that they are making the right decision for the coroner, the office staff and, of course, the public.

editorial@vindy.com