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Washington County has moved a step closer to acquiring property in Bartlesville for the construction of an Emergency Management Warehouse.

The Washington County Commissioners approved a contract with Adams Muir Land Trust on Monday morning to acquire three acres adjacent to the water tower on Bison Road across from ABB for $75,000.

Washington County Emergency Management (WCEM) Director Kary Cox said this is a project that has been in the works for quite some time. Cox said the warehouse has ties to the recent coronavirus pandemic. He said it would be used for other purposes as well.

Cox said WCEM has been looking for a place to store equipment as well as other items that they used during the pandemic such as masks, gloves, and sanitizer. He said they were having a hard time finding a space to store everything while they worked to distribute it out.

The warehouse would allow WCEM an area to distribute items that you may need. Cox said it could also be a place where drive-thru testing can occur like it did during the pandemic. He said this will give WCEM another avenue to provide services to you if Washington County is successful in this endeavor.

Several locations were considered for the warehouse. Cox said WCEM had looked at some property along the Price Road and Madison Road extensions. He said they also looked at some areas along Tuxedo Boulevard. There were even locations outside of Bartlesville City Limits that were viewed when considering this project.

Cox said they wanted the space to be out of hazard areas and out of high traffic locations. He said they also wanted the warehouse to be easily accessible. He added that the property across from ABB met all the factors that WCEM considered when they were looking for a location for the future warehouse.

WCEM provides services for Washington County and the City of Bartlesville. Cox said everything WCEM does is tied to Bartlesville in one way or another. He said the property they are hoping to secure sits within City Limits, so Bartlesville will have additional ties to the project when it comes to utilities, zoning, and more.

Cox said they're still awaiting signatures. He said they hope to have those signatures in the next few days or weeks. There will still be a lot of the process to go through from there before it is a done deal because there are plenty of steps to complete in land transactions.