The scope of renovations for the Human Services building, 410 N. Centre Street, has expanded to additional county-owned buildings, so that the system for card-access doors can be unified.

Director of Public Works Paul Fetterolf explained the needed upgrades during a Schuylkill County Commissioners workshop meeting Wednesday. In response to a question from Commissioner Gary Hess, Fetterolf said that the upgrades include door and panel upgrades, and once complete, the upgrades will create a “unified security system.”

The upgrades include equipment and installation for cabling conduits at the Human Services building, as well as upgrades to panels and doors at other buildings:

For the Senior Services building, 110 E. Laurel Blvd., $7,894 for Johnson Controls to upgrade the Star Panel.

For the Adult Probation Building, 300 N. Third St., $13,987 for Johnson Controls for star panel upgrades and five door upgrades.

For the Human Services Building, 410 S. Centre St., $22,580 for Johnson Controls to provide and install four new card access doors, and a new one-star panel and accommodate the four new doors. The existing panel is maxed out at 16 doors.

Fetterolf estimated that the changes may take about a month. County officials and workers are poised to move into the Human Services Building, which will also house the county’s Drug & Alcohol and Mental Health agencies, the Public Defenders’ office, and the office of District Judge James Reiley. The county had budgeted $2.9 million for renovations to the building.

Until 2016 the building was home for the county’s Children & Youth Services Agency. C&Y outgrew the building and moved across Laurel Boulevard to the former home of Empire Beauty School, a building that the county bought and renovated.