Washington County to build new parking structure in downtown St. George

ST. GEORGE — The city of St. George will see a second parking structure built downtown in the near future while the county jail will get an expansion in medical services thanks to resolutions recently passed by the Washington County Commission.

The Washington County Administration Building being built next to the building it will replace, St. George, Utah, July 9, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler. St. George News

“It is absolutely needed,” Washington County Administrator Nicholle Felshaw said about the new planned parking structure during the July 6 meeting of the Washington County Commission.

The parking structure – which will be built in the parking lot set between the current Washington County Administration Building and the Boulevard Office Building on 200 South – has been in the works as a part of the overall construction plans related to the new county administration building being built on the corner of 100 East and Tabernacle streets.

It was anticipated that the new parking structure would be built once the new administration building was finished in late 2022. However, that timetable has been moved forward thanks to the passage of a resolution by the commission.

The resolution allows the county to move forward with instructions for the contractor building the incoming county building to go ahead with the construction of the parking facility as well.

The Main Street Plaza parking facility, St. George, Utah, July 9, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler. St. George News

“The parking structure will take much less time (to build) than the new administration building, so we actually will have a new parking structure – if we continue on this route – much sooner than our administration building will be done,” Felshaw said.

While the construction of the new parking facility will eliminate the parking lot behind the current county administration building, Felshaw said the structure will likely become “the most loved” once it’s complete.

“We hope that our citizens and employees will understand this is for the betterment of the county as a whole because parking is a struggle in the St. George Main Street area,” she said.

The county’s parking structure would be the second in the immediate area. The first was built as a part of the Main Street Plaza and lies a block west of the site of the new county administration building on Tabernacle Street.

The estimated cost of the project and when it may begin have not yet been determined.

Washington County Undersheriff James Stanley speaks to the Washington County Commission, St. George, July 6, St. George, Utah | Photo courtesy of Washington County/CEC, St. George News

In other business, the County Commission passed a resolution approving a medical services expansion wing at the Purgatory Correctional Facility.

Prior to the commission’s passing the resolution, a committee of law enforcement officers and related parties reviewed presentations from various architectural firms vying to be the ones to design the expansion. Washington County Undersheriff James Stanley told the commission that members of the committee wanted to make sure they were getting an architectural firm that is the best in its field.

“I know how to build a prison, but I don’t know how to build a medical wing,” Stanley said. “Law enforcement officers aren’t doctors or medical experts.”

Felshaw said the county jail will also see the building of separate housing for inmates who serve relatively short sentences or serve their time during the weekend.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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