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4 <br /> <br />flexible space for administrative, public-facing, and support functions. However, in recent <br />years, the building began experiencing persistent water intrusion problems, which led to <br />the displacement of all occupants and rendered the building unfit for use in 2019. The <br />building is currently vacant. <br /> <br /> <br />The proposed project will repurpose the Link Center to serve as the new headquarters <br />for the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. This relocation will enable the Sheriff’s Office to <br />consolidate and expand its operations in a modernized facility specifically designed to <br />meet the needs of a contemporary law enforcement agency. Importantly, the move will <br />also allow the County to unlock valuable space within the existing Justice Center, thus <br />clearing the way for a future Justice Center annex—one of the key long-term priorities in <br />the County’s Justice Space Needs project. <br /> <br />Currently, the Sheriff’s Office occupies the ground floor of the Justice Center in a space <br />totaling approximately 12,437 square feet. While this space has served its purpose over <br />the years, it is undersized and functionally limited for a growing agency with expanding <br />responsibilities. By transitioning into the renovated Link Center, the Sheriff’s Office will <br />gain dedicated space designed to accommodate administrative functions, investigative <br />divisions, command staff, secure areas, and community interface components in a <br />manner that promotes operational efficiency and long-term scalability. Additionally, due <br />to the size of Link, some of the evidence processing that currently occurs within the <br />evidence storage will move to Link as part of the renovation. <br /> <br /> <br />B. Evidence Storage Facility <br /> <br />The second component of this initiative arises from long-standing challenges with the <br />Sheriff’s Office’s current evidence storage setup, which is located beneath the old jail <br />structure. This space was never designed to serve as a long-term evidence storage <br />facility and has struggled for years to keep pace with the operational demands of a <br />modern law enforcement agency. As case volumes, evidence types, and chain-of-custody <br />requirements have grown in complexity, the limitations of the existing facility have become <br />increasingly apparent. <br /> <br />The layout of the current storage area complicates day-to-day operations, with limited <br />capacity, aging infrastructure, and suboptimal security features that hinder efficient <br />processing and preservation of sensitive materials. Its location beneath an outdated <br />structure further exacerbates access challenges and introduces logistical inefficiencies <br />that affect both personnel and case workflows. These operational constraints have placed <br />strain on evidence technicians and introduced avoidable risks to the integrity of stored <br />materials. <br /> <br />The County has identified these deficiencies as a significant obstacle to meeting modern <br />law enforcement standards and accreditation requirements. Addressing them is a critical <br />component of the broader effort to modernize public safety infrastructure and ensure <br />compliance with national best practices in evidence handling. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Docusign Envelope ID: ED9774D9-AC0C-4CB2-997F-EA672B7B6C5D