Rowan County’s facilities master plan — presented to commissioners on Monday — included details about the future locations of government departments, but also revealed most buildings, including West End Plaza, are in sound structural condition.

Buildings other than the former Salisbury Mall — renamed West End Plaza — with deficiencies include the county’s building at 402 North Main St., the magistrates’ office, facilities management on Airport Road and a former Social Services building on West Innes Street. The West End Plaza is listed in the master plan as being in generally good structural condition, despite having significant roof deficiencies, distress at the northwest and southwest corners of the facility and cracks in various walls.

For months before the most recent commissioners’ election, some urged county commissioners to sell the former mall. When asked following the master plan’s presentation, commissioners mostly agreed keeping West End Plaza would be the most efficient and cost-effective way to provide space for county departments. Commissioners cited West End Plaza’s generally good condition and a cost savings of $14 million, cited in the master plan as the difference between a future with and without without the former mall.

Commissioners Chairman Greg Edds after the master plan’s presentation said county leaders would have to fully examine the report before making a decision. In a lengthy Facebook post on his public page, however, he discussed the cost differences if county government was to keep the West End Plaza. Edds said a proposed conference center and event hall at West End Plaza add to the benefits provided by the facility. The cost provided by architects in the master plan for a future with the former mall was $27.5 million.

“Without those two amenities, (a conference center and events hall), the total cost to provide needed space drops to $23 million,” Edds wrote in the post.

Commissioner Judy Klusman differed from other commissions when asked about the future of Rowan County government with the former mall.

“If you can give me $3.5 million, I’ll sell it to you today,” Klusman said. “The way I look at it right now is that we have a lot of options. Some of them include the mall. Some don’t.”

She said county officials are talking with various others in education and business about potential partnerships that could be beneficial if Rowan County keeps West End Plaza.

In generally good shape

During Monday’s master plan presentation, architects only briefly addressed West End Plaza’s physical condition. Architects didn’t discuss conditions of other county owned buildings.

The final pages of the master plan, however, include a structural evaluation of West End Plaza conducted by Charlotte-based consulting company Terracon. The evaluation states “The main structural systems observed at the West End Plaza are in good condition. No evidence of significant corrosion, excessive deflections, warping, broken connections, etc. that may be indicative of systematic deficiencies associated with the design or construction of the facility.”

Further in the company’s evaluation, cracks in masonry bearing walls inside of the former JC Penney store, failed sealant joints and cracks in brick veneer are mentioned. Some masonry walls may have to be rebuilt, according to the evaluation. Terracon mentions that further evaluation may be needed in some areas of the West End Plaza, including the northwest and southwest corners of the building to determine if settlement of the building has occurred.

“Not all areas of the facility were observed,” Terracon’s assessment states. “Therefore, it should be understood that conditions exist which were not observed and which may not be consistent with the findings of this report.”

Multiple times throughout the report the company mentioned the condition of West End Plaza’s roof, which commissioners have already identified as needing replacing.

“I think there are certain things you’re going to have to do, like put on a new roof, whether you move anybody out there or not,” said Commissioner Jim Greene.

When asked, Greene said commissioners could perform some construction work as needed and as money is available.

“If you look at the master plan and give credence to the the architects, the needs of the Department of Social Services, the needs of the sheriff’s department and what is actually going to happen in the future, logic would show that keeping the mall and using it as a source to fill our needs is the right financial thing to do,” Greene said.

Roof problems make up most other deficiencies in county buildings. The county’s building at 402 North Main St. is listed as needing a new roof in less than five years. The magistrate’s office is also listed as needing a new roof in less than five years, but is scheduled for demolition in both options that include the county keeping West End Plaza. Facilities management is listed as needing a new roof within five years.

The only county building that’s listed with multiple needs in nearly every category is a former Social Services building on West Innes Street. All interior conditions are listed as fair. The roof is listed as needing replacement in less than two years and structural conditions are all listed as fair.

A $27 million move

Two distinct options were presented for a county department move to the West End Plaza. However, the departments to be moved in both options remained identical.

The master plan lists Social Services, Health, Elections, Code Enforcement, Environmental Health, Planning and Development, Veterans Services and the library’s Local History and Genealogy Division as departments to be moved to the West End Plaza.

The plans vary significantly, with only Elections remaining in the same, 10,000-foot space in both plans. The space designated for Elections is shown on a layout as being left of the former JC Penney store.

In an option labeled A1, Social Services would receive a nearly 70,000-foot space on the far left of West End Plaza. The former Belk’s building — on the far right — would become a conference center and event hall. The remaining 34,000 square feet of space in the former Belk’s building is labeled as flex space, which represents a total of 127,500 square feet in option A1. Architects suggested some flex space could be used for retail stores until needed for another county department or other agency.

The A1 option consolidates remaining county departments into the center of the former mall, with the Health Department receiving the second greatest amount of space — 32,400 square feet — behind Social Services. Code Enforcement, Environmental Health and Planning and Development would all be consolidated into an 11,400 square-foot space.

In option A2, Social Services receives about 10,000 square feet more. It would be in the former Belk’s building. The amount of flex space is also larger in the second option. Option A2 places conference and public assembly space in an identically sized space, but cuts out a 10,600 square-foot event hall. Local History and Genealogy gets a slightly bigger space, while all other departments receive reduced square footage in the Option A2.

The total cost estimated by ADW Architects, the company responsible for the master plan, for work at the West End Plaza alone is $21.26 million.

The sheriff’s office may be the most significant department move not that doesn’t include West End Plaza. Only one option is listed for the sheriff’s office if Rowan County government keeps West End Plaza.

The sheriff’s office would move to the current Social Services and Health Department building on East Innes Street. A total of 27,000 square feet would be left as flex space in the East Innes Street building with the sheriff’s office move. A portion of the sheriff’s office would also use 4,000 square feet of space in the county’s building on East Innes Street.

Commissioners have not discussed the West End Plaza among themselves in public and say significant discussion has not occurred among all five in private.

Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246.