Blue Building staff to relocate

The Flathead County Treasurer’s Office, Superintendent of Schools Office and the motor-vehicle department will be relocated for about six months while the county’s Blue Building gets a $784,000 upgrade.

Renovation of the metal-paneled building — a landmark for some and eyesore to others — will begin at the end of June and should be done by December, County Administrative Officer Mike Pence said.

Staff relocations will begin in early June.

The 19 employees of the Treasurer’s Office, which includes motor-vehicle workers, will be housed temporarily in the Earl Bennett Building, across the street to the south of the Blue Building. Three employees in the accounting department will set up on the second floor, while the tax and motor-vehicle departments will operate on the new third floor of the Earl Bennett Building.

Accounting employees will relocate on June 3, Treasurer Adele Krantz said, adding that school and fire districts and other entities using that department need to note the change.

The tax division will move the night of June 7 and open for business on June 8 in its temporary quarters.

The motor-vehicle department will tear down on June 10 and be ready for business on June 11.

The three employees of the Superintendent of Schools Office will relocate by June 15 to the basement of the Justice Center, in the former Office of Emergency Services space.

Family Court Services will stay at the Blue Building during the construction because its space is largely unaffected by the upgrades.

Krantz said signs will be posted to direct the public to the temporary offices.

The renovation of the Blue Building includes a new exterior, and it won’t be blue. It will be tan.

The building was erected in 1974 as temporary quarters for a growing county government.

Among the upgrades are a new entry addition and a new elevator. A major component of the project is the relocation of the tax and accounting departments from the lower level to the main floor. Those departments will consolidate with the motor-vehicle department for increased efficiency, Krantz said.

The Superintendent of Schools office will move to the lower level and Family Court Services will remain in its current location.