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The supervisor of elections office officially has a new, more secure home.

Elected officials and community members from Martin County participated Monday, Dec. 5, in a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house at the elections center on Martin Luther King Boulevard in Stuart.  The event served as the center's formal introduction to county residents.  Elections staff moved into the building more than a month ago.

Supervisor of Elections Vicki Davis began pursuing a new center as soon as she took office in January.  Her office's operations had been spread out around Martin County before the building opened.

"This allows me to have everything under one roof and to meet all of the statutory mandates," Davis said.

The center contains several security features to protect the integrity of voting in the county, Davis said.  Security cameras hang from the ceiling throughout the building.  Staff members will need security cards to open doors.  And a vault with a custody lock will hold absentee ballots until poll workers are ready to count them.

The vault is an original feature of the 12,000-square-foot building, which was constructed as a post office in the 1950s.  The county Health Department also once occupied the building owned by Jim and Jan Bruner.