It’s good to see that Chautauqua County has arrived at short-term extensions of leases for its offices in Jamestown.

The county’s frustrations with its office locations are understandable, but there were enough questions about a proposal to move the offices to the Chautauqua Mall in Lakewood that keeping the offices located in downtown Jamestown made a lot of sense for now.

But those who fought to keep the offices downtown shouldn’t think they’ve won anything but a temporary reprieve.

It’s telling that Josh Rothwell, assistant director of Public Facilities for buildings and grounds, said the leases for the DMV office on Third Street and Mental Hygiene office on Fifth Street are both for two years instead of the regular five year lease term.

“We’re up in the air on how we’re going to do everything in the south county,” he said.

We do think the county’s offices should remain in Jamestown. For as much as we hear about transportation issues, particularly for those with low incomes, increasing the distance to county offices in Lakewood makes little sense. But there is one thing the mall had going for it that existing office space doesn’t – ample parking and an ability to cluster county offices in one place rather than at sites throughout downtown Jamestown. We’ll be the first to admit the existing Third Street DMV location is a pain for customers to get in and out of in addition to the issues county employees have raised with the building.

The concept pitched by the Chautauqua Mall isn’t a bad one for Chautauqua County offices. Location was its big problem. A massive retail space has opened up with the closure of Big Lots. The Brooklyn Square Rite Aid is slated to close. Both have the type of parking and space the county may need and the downtown presence that better suits the needs of those using county services.

If county officials were seriously considering moving their offices, then they should spend the next two years finding a space in Jamestown.