In the report released earlier this year, the consultants recommended a new jail on the grounds of the current county Incarceration Facility north of Troy. The cost of a recommended 200-bed maximum security jail, including 32 new medical beds, was estimated at $100 million.
The county today has the Incarceration Facility, a minimum-security unit opened in 1999, along with a maximum-security facility built in downtown Troy at the county Safety Building in the early 1970s.
The proposal calls, too, for reuse of the Incarceration Facility’s beds, its lobby, laundry and food service areas, among others. Duchak said a new facility should include sheriff’s office administration space plus offices for the county Emergency Management Agency and the backup county 911 center.
Commissioners said options to pay for a jail solution include a sales tax increase, which would have to be approved by voters. The amount of the proposed sales tax has not been decided.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
The $100 million, the commission said, might be more than voters would support.
“If we move forward, education is critical,” Duchak said.
“There is never a good time to do this,” said Commissioner Wade Westfall.
The county officials earlier thought the county would qualify for $15 million toward a jail project from the state budget. That money, they said, has been removed. Commissioners asked Gearhardt how much money could be pulled from the county reserves to go toward a jail project. Gearhardt said was not sure he could get a “substantial amount” with all of the other county projects being done.
As a result, Commission President Ted Mercer said he would like to meet with state representatives to show them the current facilities and discuss options.
In the meantime, commissioners said they are interested in hiring HDR to work on a marketing plan for a local jail proposal. The price tag for that work earlier was mentioned at $156,000. That effort would involve community education of jail needs, costs and options. Commissioners said they would not be willing to put any proposal on the ballot without a marketing plan.
“We are not the only county in Ohio that has this (jail) problem. I think we have to keep going forward … with an educational piece. We need professional help,” Mercer said.
Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com.
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