Luzerne County is spending $112,800 on signs designed to make it easier for the public to identify and navigate buildings, records show.
County Manager C. David Pedri initiated the project last year, telling county council help is warranted for people visiting county offices.
Pedri said he often heard visitors confused about office locations when he was county solicitor in an office situated near the rear courthouse entrance.
“There were constantly people questioning where to go and where to park,” he said. “It shouldn’t be a maze.”
Jessup-based Mar-Paul Company was hired to complete the sign project last year for $74,000. The administration recently approved a $38,828 change order adding signs in various locations.
Funding for the project was provided in the county engineering department budget, Pedri said.
Identifying the exterior of county buildings is important because county offices are spread out, forcing visitors to walk greater distances or return to their cars to drive to another location if they are in the wrong place, he said.
In addition to the courthouse, the county’s Wilkes-Barre properties include the Penn Place and Bernard C. Brominski buildings, an annex and separate structures housing the human services, community development, engineering and emergency management offices.
The parkade on Water Street also must be labeled because some visitors don’t realize they can park there for free and reach the courthouse through an underground pedestrian tunnel, he said.
An office directory map will be posted on the county website when it is revamped this spring, he said.
A sign company was needed to make the signs consistent and recognizable, he said.
Pedri maintained the expense is justified to increase an atmosphere of professionalism, particularly at the courthouse.
“This is a beautiful building, and we’re spending millions of dollars renovating,” he said. “A piece of paper stuck to an office door is not acceptable.”
Signs will direct visitors to various offices and also restrooms that are accessible to the disabled, he said.
The project is scheduled for completion in March, but some signs are already up.
The recent change order included the addition of signs at the county’s West Side Annex near the Wyoming Valley Airport in Forty Fort and the record storage facility, which also houses the coroner’s office, in Hanover Township.
“The feedback from employees and visitors has been very positive,” Pedri said.
