Riverside County's core service building in Hemet has been moved to a remodeled, but vacant, retail building at 749 N. State St. The new building houses a consortium of county agencies and the services they offer, some new.

The new center is in the former Smart & Final building, which had been vacant several years.

The physical changes include an exterior made friendlier to pedestrians and the handicapped while the interior has an improved routing system and new service rooms of several types.

The interior now has computer and skills labors, conference rooms, offi ces, and a kitchen and break room for members of the staff.

On the more mundane side, the improvements include bringing the building up to California Building Code standards with energy effi cient electrical and air conditioning/heating systems, water conserving plumbing, a new fi re sprinkler system, a modern burglary alarm system, state-ofthe- art computers, audio/visual equipment, and information technology. Services include job placement, education, job training, employment programs, and senior services.

Among the agencies working out of the remodeled facility include Workforce Development, KinCare/Kinship, veterans' services, C.A.R.E. team, Community Action Partnership Care-a-Van, WarmLine, and the Offi ce on Aging.

Cost of the remake was $1.7 million for a project that ran from April through November.

Money for the work came from a combination of redevelopment and Community Development Block Grant funds.