Lewis County Facilities Administrator favors long lasting building maintenance

CHEHALIS – Lewis County Capital Campus construction projects continue to take shape in and around the historic county courthouse in Chehalis.

County Facilities Department crews and contractors are placing final touches on a new Lewis County Public Works Building at 57 W. Main Street, the former Main Street Professional Building.

Facilities Administrator Alex Murray was working Wednesday between the new Public Works facility and the James Building at 17 SW Cascade Ave. in Chehalis, the home to Lewis County WSU Extension Service offices. At the WSU building, original tongue and groove roofing and built-in gutters are being replaced.

“The upgrades will handle our northwest weather so much better and if buildings are going to be in the county inventory for an extended period of time we need to make sure they have good roofs,” Murray said. “I would like every one of our building maintenance projects to be a 40-year project –and even though the roof may need replacement in 20 years– we want to take care of those things to ensure that county buildings are built well and improvements last longer.

“Things are coming together – furniture is going in and doors are being trimmed out – with hopes that the new Public Works offices will be ready to provide public services soon,” Murray said.