The Sheriff Says Camden’s Facility Falls Short. So Why Is the Recreation Center First?

CAMDEN, N.C. Camden County Sheriff J. Kevin Jones says his office lacks adequate space and does not meet the broad set of modern law-enforcement standards presented to him by the Camden Tribune.

County Manager Erin Burke says Camden intends to address that need, but only after constructing a combined Parks and Recreation/Senior Center. Once those programs relocate, the county plans to renovate the building they leave behind for the Sheriff’s Office.

Camden Tribune received complete written responses to all 10 facility questions sent separately to Burke and Jones. Their answers show two documented needs and one unresolved question: Why did the combined center receive priority over a purpose-built law-enforcement facility?

What the county manager said

Burke wrote that the Sheriff’s Office had requested additional space after adding nine positions during the previous four years. She said the department had made internal alterations and expanded into an outbuilding.

Asked whether Camden had conducted a formal facilities assessment or space-needs analysis specifically for the Sheriff’s Office, Burke answered: “No study has been conducted.”

She said the county recognizes that departments need more room as Camden grows. Her stated sequence was to build the Parks and Recreation/Senior Center first and then “renovate the old center to meet the needs of the Sheriff’s Office.”

Asked whether any funding, property or operational constraint had prevented Camden from pursuing a separate Sheriff’s Office project, Burke’s full answer was: “No.”

She said county efforts had focused on the new high school and the Treasure Point Extension Center. With those projects underway, she said the Board and staff were turning to the combined center and hoped to address facility needs “starting with the needs of our youth and senior citizens” before expanding from there.

What the sheriff said

Jones answered the basic space question directly: “The short answer is no.”

He listed evidence and file storage, offices for deputies and civilian employees, armory and tactical-equipment security, interview rooms, records systems and a fenced area for seized vehicles among the deficiencies.

When Camden Tribune asked whether the present facility meets modern standards for evidence, digital evidence, privacy, interviews, emergency operations and officer safety, Jones wrote: “To be honest, I must say no, it does not.”

Jones said the current cinder-block building is at least 70 years old. He said old records must be stored in a poorly ventilated attic because there is not enough room downstairs.

“Extreme heat in the summer has a detrimental effect on anything that is stored up there, not to mention extreme cold in the winter.”

Jones also confirmed that he had never submitted a formal request for a new building or major expansion.

“No, not formally. The reason being is that when I took office, we were severely behind times in other areas that they took priority over a new building.”

He said a new building had been mentioned informally to county officials. He described the Senior Center arrangement as “sort of” a long-term plan and said converting that building would be “a tremendous step forward” if the county provides sufficient funding.

Jones stopped short of demanding construction of a new facility. He called taxpayers “tax strapped” and said voters should have an opportunity to decide before the county spends money on a new Sheriff’s Office or other new county buildings.

What the adopted budget shows

Camden’s FY 2026–27 budget ordinance appropriates $3,917,331.75 to the Sheriff’s Office and $433,077.68 to School Resource Officers. The combined $4,350,409.43 is the largest amount in the county’s departmental budget table, above Emergency Medical Services at $2,970,743.56.

School current expense is larger, but the county lists that money separately as a special appropriation rather than a county department.

Readers can examine the June 23 adopted-budget records or search “Sheriff & SRO” through Camden Tribune’s Camden Civic Lens.

The operating appropriation does not include a separately funded Sheriff’s Office building project.

What remains unanswered

The county’s capital plans establish a sequence: build the combined center, move Parks and Recreation and senior programs, then renovate the vacated building for law enforcement.

The records reviewed by Camden Tribune do not show a side-by-side comparison with constructing a purpose-built Sheriff’s Office first. They do not provide the combined cost of the new center and later Sheriff renovation, or a professional finding that the old Senior Center can meet evidence, holding-cell, interview, security and future-growth requirements.

The choice does not have to be reduced to seniors versus public safety. Camden’s plan attempts to address both. The missing public record is the analysis showing why this order was selected and whether it offers the safest and most economical result.

Related coverage: Camden Sheriff’s Office: No Dedicated Facility Funded Yet | Camden County Moves Forward on Recreation and Senior Center Planning, but How Will It Be Paid For?

Source note: This report is based on written responses from County Manager Erin Burke dated July 21, 2026; Sheriff Jones’s written response dated July 29; Camden County’s adopted 2024–2029 and 2026–2031 capital plans; and the adopted FY 2026–27 budget documents.