New county building takes form, construction to continue through winter
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After five months, the new Lake County Annex Office is taking shape. According to Swank Enterprises Site Supervisor Justin McIntyre, construction on the building will continue throughout the winter months.
Crews broke ground on the annex in April, with the project slated for completion by July 2025.
The three-story 15,649 square foot building will house an election office, voting and community rooms on the first floor. Lake County’s planning and environmental health departments will be located on the second floor while the G.I.S. and IT department will be housed on the third floor.
The new annex is southwest of the current county building on the corner of First Street E. and Fifth Avenue E. and will be named the Dave Stipe Annex in honor of former longtime county commissioner Dave Stipe. A Charlo rancher, Stipe passed away in March of 2023 from a rare and incurable form of skin cancer. He served two six-year terms as a county commissioner from 1993-2005. Stipe was elected again in 2016 but stepped down 17 months before the end of his third term for health reasons.
