OBSERVER Photo by Gregory Bacon Kathryn Stuczynski, a Child Protective Services caseworker in Dunkirk, said she has been told she will not be working out of Lucas Avenue, but instead must work remotely or from Jamestown.

Chautauqua County is moving ahead with plans to relocate its Social Services in Dunkirk.

Some employees in the department, meanwhile, are upset they are being told they will have to work either remotely or in Jamestown.

During the December county Legislature meeting, lawmakers approved a plan to move its Social Services Department from the North County Office Building on Central Avenue to 15 W. Lucas Ave., where The Care Center used be located.

The lease goes into effect Jan. 1; however, modifications are required before the move can take place. Because of this, the legislature also approved a lease extension with G. H. Graf Building LLC, the owner of the North County Office Building, to stay there until the West Lucas Avenue building is ready.

The new lease at the West Lucas Avenue is for 10 years. The county will pay $15.05 per square foot in 2023, compared to $1.69 per square foot at its current location.

County Budget Director Kathleen Dennison said previously the new lease will save the county $1 million over the 10-year period.

“They’re not leaving Dunkirk. They’re just going to be moving up the street a few blocks,” said Legislator Bob Bankoski, D-Dunkirk.

The building on West Lucas Avenue is owned by Agricultural Land Holdings LLC. That is the same company that owns the Sterns Building, where the county’s Probation and Mental Hygiene departments are now located. Those departments moved there earlier this year.

Last spring, former Health and Human Services Director Christine Schuyler announced that the county’s Department of Social Services was relocating some of its management staff to Jamestown, saying that staff work in the Adult, Children and Family Services Division consists of field/home visits that do not require a large office presence.

At that time, she said the county was looking to for a smaller office space than the Graf building on Central Avenue.

After the December vote to approve the move, Kathryn Stuczynski, a child protective services caseworker, expressed her disappointment that some DSS staff are being required to work out of Jamestown.

“In recent years we have been told by our administrators that we are fieldworkers and we should not have a large presence in the office daily. This is not true,” she said. “There’s approximately 30 workers in our office on the first floor of the Graf building. About 25 of us are there daily.”

Stuczynski said her supervisors have told them that they will not be moving to Lucas Avenue, but instead need to work out of Jamestown.

“This will drastically increase travel time and mileage, as cover the entire county,” she said. “To go from Jamestown to Dunkirk, this is an hour and a half drive time. This is less time that I get to spend with the families I am privileged with to serve in this county.”

Stuczynski noted that they did work out of their homes during the pandemic. However, their call rates were significantly lower, because schools were not meeting in person.

“Working this job is already stressful enough,” she said. “Working out of a home or my car like I did during the pandemic is not only unsafe, it’s also not conducive to the work I do every day.”

Legislature Chairman Pierre Chagnon, R-Bemus Point, thanked Stuczynski for her comments.