"The mission of the Buildings and Grounds Department is to maintain a safe, clean, and pleasant environment within all County facilities for the benefit of the employees and citizens of Allen County."

The twelve members of the Buildings and Grounds staff are responsible for maintenance all County Government buildings, including the Courthouse, Courthouse Annex, County Jail, Court of Appeals Building, and most recently, the City Loan Building. In addition to these facilities, building and grounds maintains 15 parking lots, all walkways, steps and lawns adjacent to these areas, shrubs and seasonal flowers in the warm months, and provides snow removal during the winter.

Allen County's Buildings and Grounds Department is a licensed contractor and is primarily self-contained. It includes licensed electricians, plumbers and other highly trained technicians. This means the County rarely has to contract for services outside of their expertise. The staff is on call 24-hours a day and is often needed to keep sophisticated facilities operational, such as the high-tech security system within the County Jail. With an average of 210 to 250 inmates housed within this complex at any one time, safety and fire protection are utmost priorities.

In addition to the general duties outlined above, the Department:

• Oversees all underground storage tank removal and associated piping and lines, ensuring compliance with the Bureau of Underground Storage Tank Regulations (BUSTR).
• Installs and maintains cabling for all telephones and computers within the County Administrative buildings.
• Sorts and posts County mail.
• Tests and maintains fire pumps.
• Pays County utility bills.
• Maintains building plumbing, including 860 flush valves necessary for hot/cold running water and sanitary equipment within the County Jail alone.
• Raises all flags, tends to flagpoles on County property, and replaces this equipment as needed.

The staff meets monthly to review safety regulations and ensure implementation of Public Employee Risk Reduction Program (PERRP) guidelines. They attend educational seminars to keep up to date on the latest practices and procedures relative to the security and protection of County buildings, employees and citizens.