Open house, ribbon-cutting at PCCS addition Aug. 23

Monday, August 15, 2016

Putnam County Comprehensive Services (PCCS) will unveil its newly completed 8,000-square-foot addition in a Tuesday, Aug. 23 open house.

The community open house is scheduled for 3-5 p.m. Tuesday at the PCCS facility, 630 Tennessee St., Greencastle.

An 8,000-square-foot addition to the Putnam County Comprehensive Services facility at 630 Tennessee St., Greencastle, will be unveiled to the community Tuesday, Aug. 23 in a 3-5 p.m. open house.

The public is welcome to tour the office and program spaces that PCCS provides to aid in its mission of assisting individuals with developmental and other disabilities to achieve greater independence and to become fully engaged participants in the communities of their choice.

The official ribbon-cutting ceremony will occur at 5 p.m. with words from current Executive Director Andrew Ranck and former Executive Director, Charles Schroeder, who has spearheaded the construction and refurbishing projects.

After the ceremony, PCCS will host the monthly Greencastle Chamber of Commerce After Hours event until 7 p.m. Both public guests and Chamber members and their guests are welcome to be present at the ribbon cutting.

Planning for the much-needed addition, while in discussion for many years, began in 2014 with the groundbreaking occurring last September, Ranck explained.

The addition has allowed PCCS to bring the agency under one roof in Greencastle. Due to substantial growth in the past few years, PCCS had to rent off-site space to provide all of the services necessary to achieve its mission. Additionally, there was not enough administrative office space to support the programs operated by PCCS.

The addition has doubled the space that PCCS has for both programs and services.

The new addition boasts space for day programming services, providing large and small classroom space for educational and recreational opportunities. The addition also provides a large eating area and state-of-the-art kitchen that has been designed to provide teaching space, and includes appliances and counter space that have been designed to allow those in wheelchairs to easily move about and work in the kitchen space. Movable walls throughout the addition allow for smaller meeting spaces to be opened for larger events as needed.

Care was taken, Ranck stressed, to include the employees and the people they serve in the planning and construction process to ensure the facilities were user friendly and completely accessible to those with disabilities.

The addition also provides administrative office space for the largest program PCCS provides, residential community living. While PCCS provides a robust day service, vocational and community access activities, its largest program takes place in the private homes and communities of the people they serve.

With a 26-county reach, PCCS needed more space for the staff that coordinates this program.

The original building, in use since the 1970s and currently being refurbished as well, is connected to the addition and continues to provide a large open work center allowing the opportunity for vocational training.

Local businesses such as Heartland Automotive, IAC, Cottage Garden and NAPA provide work opportunities both at PCCS and at their business sites for this training and the opportunity to earn a paycheck.

Also housed in the original building are the offices for PCCS's Supported Employment Program, which places individuals in community jobs through referral from the Indiana Department of Vocational Rehabilitation Services.

The PCCS business operations support staff remain within the original building. PCCS also maintains an office and program space in Greenwood to provide services to the greater Indianapolis area.

Respond to this story

Posting a comment requires free registration: