KYLE GREEN The Roanoke Times

Members of the Franklin County Board of Supervisors begin a meeting in the new Franklin County Government Building on Tuesday.

ROCKY MOUNT -- Franklin County government has upgraded.

County departments have gone from confined, drab spaces in multiple buildings in uptown Rocky Mount to the former Winn-Dixie grocery store on Franklin Street -- a building renovated to fit each department's needs.

Over the past few weeks, departments have quietly made the move to the contemporary building offering space, skylights and flatscreen televisions.

Administration, finance, information technology, and planning and community development have already made the move. The county treasurer, registrar and economic development crews are next on the list.

All departments will remain open during the move, which should be completed by the summer, County Administrator Rick Huff said.

The first upgrade is noticeable before visitors even step inside the building's more than 50,000 square feet.

More than 120 parking spots are available in front of the building, apart from the 12 or so that line East Court Street, in front of the former buildings.

Inside, paneling and furniture are dark wood, and long hallways branch out from the rotunda to different offices.

Officials worked for years on a central location for all of the county's departments. Most were spread throughout numerous buildings in Rocky Mount.

Since 1985, the board of supervisors held its regular monthly meetings in the Franklin County Courthouse.

Tuesday, the group met for the first time in its new meeting room in the renovated government center.

Supervisors Leland Mitchell and Ronnie Thompson said they like the finished product.

"It's a large asset to the county," Thompson said.

Both acknowledged that the county, like many others, is facing financial difficulties this year -- which could bring layoffs and program reductions -- but said the new building was needed.

The financial climate allowed the county to renovate the building at a much lower cost, Mitchell said.

The contract came in at $5.6 million, about $1 million less than county officials anticipated. The 17 acres of land and building cost $1.6 million.

To finance the project, Franklin County officials borrowed $4.25 million in December 2007. The rest will come from the county's reserve fund over the next two fiscal years.

Thompson said he's gotten a lot of feedback from residents and has been asked why the building is so fancy.

"This is for the next 50 years," Mitchell said. "You can't start off being grubby on the first day."