Posted: 11/8/05
New law enforcement center likely to be on-site
By David Heiller
Argus News Editor
A proposed new criminal justice center (CJC) will likely be located next to the present courthouse.
That was one of the questions answered at a CJC meeting in Caledonia on November 1.
Jail planner David Prachar and two architects spent almost three hours discussing the size and location of the project with county commissioners and CJC committee members in the basement of the courthouse.
Commissioners all agreed that they would like to see the new facility located on the campus of the current courthouse and jail buildings. They looked at two sketches that showed the building connected to the south side of the current courthouse.
Some houses would have to be purchased and razed with either of the plans.
Architect Rich McCarthy from the firm of Klein McCarthy and Associates said that putting the building off-site would require buying property. That option would also mean the new facility could not use the existing space, he added.
Prachar and commissioner Kevin Kelleher both said that the existing courtroom could be used if the new building were built on-site. They both suggested designating the entire second floor of the current courthouse to criminal justice use, which would make it more secure. The present second floor contains non-court-related offices of environmental services and personnel departments.
Another factor is whether the current jail building can be used for any county functions. ìWhat could we utilize it for?î Kelleher asked. For example, human services could go to the old jail and zoning and environmental services could go downstairs in the current courthouse, Kelleher said. ìThat opens up quite a bit of space in the courthouse,î he said.
Klein-McCarthy will submit a bid to the county to do an evaluation of the building to see whether and how it could be remodeled and used.
McCarthy and fellow architect Scott Fettig also went over the proposed square footage of the three components of the new building: jail, law enforcement, and courts. Project manager Mark Schiltz, who is also the jail administrator, said he would meet with department heads in the next few weeks to go over the components to see if any changes need to be made.
McCarthy said he was looking for agreement on how much space was needed. ìDo we need an 80-bed jail? Do we need two courtrooms and a hearing room?î he asked.
Two courtrooms are a necessity, court administrator Darlene Larson said.
42-bed jail is the plan
The jail would be set up for 42 beds, with six housing units. It would be expandable to 82 beds by double-bunking in five of the six units. It would be able to house females. Juveniles could be housed for up to six hours, but no more than that as of this time due to federal regulations.
Commissioners agreed that that was a good size. Prachar also recommended it. The board is looking at something that will last 30-50 years, so this is the most important part of the process, he said.
ìItís really important to look at this long term,î Prachar said.
Both rough drawings included acreage onto which the building could be expanded if needed.
Schiltz said that Houston County had 26 inmates that day, with 12 in the Houston County jail, which is its capacity, and 14 at other jails.
Kelleher said he would like to look at cost comparisons of keeping prisoners versus sending them elsewhere. Both Schiltz and Prachar responded by stressing the advantages of keeping them in a Houston County jail. They cited the cost of transportation, and the safety risks involved in driving. When an officer has to transport a prisoner, they are not on the streets protecting citizens, Prachar said. He added that he had had six prisoners escape while he was a jail administrator, and all had occurred during transport. ìItís dangerous,î he said.
The jail would have 19,806 net square feet, the courts 18,969 square feet, and the sheriffís office 10,985 square feet in the proposal that the architects submitted last week. A multi-story facility would require at least five acres of ground space, Fettig said; a one-story building would take 7-8 acres.
Costs of the new CJC were not discussed. A tax impact analysis for $5 million and $10 million bonds was distributed but not discussed.
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