WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office is officially on the move.

The county council voted 6-0 with one abstention Wednesday night to approve a lease agreement relocating the office to Bellingham’s Cordata neighborhood.

My Bellingham Now previously reported that the new office would be housed just off the Guide Meridian in the former headquarters of printing technology manufacturer Ryzex.

The move comes as conditions have worsened at the current Sheriff’s Office workspace in the basement of the county jail. The space was not originally designed for that use and has what county executive Satpal Sidhu calls “substandard” conditions.

According to the Whatcom County Assessor’s Office, the new location on 4600 Ryzex Way is owned by Rud Browne, a former member of the county council and a current planning commissioner.

Council member Todd Donovan was the lone abstention, as he expressed some hesitation given the potential conflict of interest at hand.

“It’s different for me to pass a lease that’s directing funds to a former council member,” Donvan said. “I have no doubt about the former council member’s integrity or this council’s integrity or the integrity of anyone involved in this, that’s just the discomfort I have with something that hasn’t been public for more than a week.”

In order to fund the new location, county officials say the council will likely either have to approve a new one-tenths of one percent public safety sales tax or force the Sheriff’s Office to absorb $750,000 in cuts.

Still, council member Ben Elenbaaas pushed back on public criticism over the roughly $500,000 annual cost of the rental.

“I would say that we have looked at a lot of other options,” Elenbaas said. “In my opinion, when I evaluate the dollars and cents of it, it’s not just the best deal, it’s hands down the best deal.”

The move is expected to be made as early as summer 2026.