Nye County Facilities Manager Bob Jones got the message Friday from county department heads: Ask the county Aug. 7 to consider funding an addition to the courthouse.

The addition, expected to cost $3.5 million could be fast-tracked, with original plans for the courthouse from 1995 already suggesting future expansion. The original plans were drawn up for a 45,000-square-foot facility, but commissioners trimmed it back to 29,000 square feet due to budget considerations, Jones said.

One commissioner in particular appeared to be in favor of the idea. Butch Borasky exhorted the department heads to come up with a long-range plan instead of renovating different facilities piecemeal. Department heads responded with a litany of stories about space shortages that, in many cases, led to the public suffering from a lack of privacy.

"As a construction person, I hear renovation on top of renovation on top of renovation -- that's money down the toilet. Let's look at the big plan here. I think you got some commissioners now willing to step up to the plate and do a fix that's going to work for the long term," Borasky said.

Nye County District Attorney Bob Beckett seemed the most persistent. He was alarmed when, after agreeing "as a team player" to move his department to the Calvada Eye, he found there was an alternate plan to move smaller departments there, like Health and Human Services along with the county health nurse.

Jones suggested when the county assessor, recorder and treasurer's offices are moved to modular buildings nearing completion just east of the courthouse, the county clerk's office could move into that space as part of the county's musical chairs process.

The wall between the district attorney's office and the clerk's office could then be knocked down, providing some expansion for Beckett's department.

Beckett decried Band-Aid approaches but also didn't want to spend more time studying "pie-in-the-sky" projects.

"I'm looking for a bird in the hand instead of two in the bush," Beckett said. "Promises are made, they're not able to be followed through with for whatever reason."

Jones thought relocating the district attorney's office to the Calvada Eye, though providing an adequate facility, would be a temporary fix and felt the DA should have offices near the courtrooms.

Beckett said separating the DA's office and the courts worked out fine when the courthouse was closed due to mold problems in 2001-2001 and district court was relocated to the Calvada Eye.

The plan was originally to remodel office space left by the assessor, treasurer and recorder into new courtrooms for a second Pahrump justice court, a juvenile court, which doesn't have its own courtroom, and another district court.

Pahrump Justice of the Peace Tina Brisebill said Nye County has been in violation of state statutes requiring a second justice court since 2005, when the governor certified the local population exceeded 34,000.

"That really should have been on the ballot last year, and it wasn't, and it's going to be next year. From what I'm looking at right now, there's not going to be a second courtroom by the time we have a second [justice of the peace] unless some other plans are looked at," Brisebill said.

Shirley Trummell, head of Nye County Health and Human Services, said her situation isn't grave. "Our clients are out in the hallway but they have always been out there," she said.

Jones countered that clients appealing for help from Trummell's office shouldn't have to bare their life stories in front of everybody in the hall. Relocating that office to the Calvada Eye would also free up space for expanding the planning department.

"I have people five times a day coming to our window seeking protective orders, and the only place we have to put them is in our office to hide them from the public, because the stalker or spouse, man or woman, might be right behind them with a gun and there's no security in the building," Brisebill said.

Juvenile Probation Director Tom Metscher said District Judge Robert Lane often allows them to hold juvenile court Tuesday mornings.

Sheriff Tony DeMeo wasn't represented, but Lane said building a new sheriff's office on East Mesquite Avenue would allow the DA to move there. But Beckett wanted action soon. He lamented that a conference room has to be occupied by an assistant district attorney.

"The deputy DA investigators, have to have privacy," he said. "There's some real nasty stuff they have to discuss with people. A lot of times, sure, they have to eventually get up in front of a jury and talk about it, but you know in the initial stages people don't like to talk about how they were raped and by whom. It's some delicate stuff. We can't just put in cubicles," Beckett said.

Public Works Director Samson Yao said the county's population can be expected to double in 10 years, generating additional revenue for improvements. County Health Nurse Maureen Budahl talked about going out to the voters with a bond issue, noting how the library and hospital district were paid off.

"Ultimately, isn't that who we're serving? So maybe they need to take some ownership of this as well," Budahl said. "Maybe the public needs a buy-in with this process."

Commissioners Peter Liakopoulos and Borasky left the room, after Commissioner Joni Eastley, speaking by conference call from Tonopah, urged them not to interfere in the employees' decision. Liakopoulos suggested putting a department like Health and Human Services in the Job Connect building at the Calvada Eye.

Jones said if commissioners can give $850,000 to the town lighting at Honeysuckle Park, they can find money for expanding the courthouse.

He said the county already budgeted money to renovate the Calvada Eye, but added that the commissioners' chambers in that building could be outdated in 10 years.

When it comes to the Calvada Eye, Brisebill said, "All this was done, and if you'll pardon me for being frank, to justify buying a 40-year-old building. That is the purpose of the Calvada plan."

County employees didn't come to a decision what to do with the Calvada Eye building.