In the interest of public service, and seats, the Androscoggin County Commission should move its meetings to a larger venue. The board is scheduled to meet today inside its claustrophobic boardroom in the county building in Auburn.

As the attention on county government has sharpened through the ongoing dispute between the commission and Sheriff Guy Desjardins, the board’s meeting room has become standing-room, with attendees forced to line the adjacent hallways and crane their necks to hear the discussion.

The room is insufficient, especially now that Chairman Elmer Berry has earned the rancor of the law enforcement brotherhood for recent comments regarding attendance at a memorial service for the late Sgt. David Rancourt. A larger area, like a courtroom, or the televised chamber at nearby Auburn Hall, would be a vast improvement.

By opening the meeting to more people, the commission says it’s disinterested in cloistering itself to a chosen few, and the public is welcome, and invited, to witness their proceedings.

Not moving, despite knowing the public’s interest in attending, would signal that the commission believes public access to its business just isn’t all that important.