An expansion underway on Unity Park Drive in Magnolia will reduce the time local law enforcement agencies spend traveling to Conroe, Montgomery County Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley said. The current building houses the constable, the sheriff, tax personnel and the justice of the peace.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office District 4 patrol expansion will move District 4 into its own space and feature a holding cell with space for about 11 arrestees, Riley said.

“What this will do is it will keep [local law enforcement] from transporting one [arrestee] at a time from here to Conroe to go and book them into the jail ... which is going to take about an average of three hours to get there, get them booked in and get them back,” he said. “These deputies and police officers can bring them right here [in Magnolia], book them into this holding cell and get back on the streets doing what they need to be doing.”

Riley said this equates to time savings of about 900 hours annually for the sheriff’s office in addition to time savings for other local law enforcement, such as the cities of Stagecoach and Magnolia and the Precinct 5 Constable's Office. The sheriff’s office will transport arrestees twice daily to Conroe.

The project totals $6.55 million, according to county information.