DAYTON — Funding issues have been cited as the reason for Montgomery County leaders to postpone further planning of building a replacement jail, according to a county spokesperson.
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Montgomery County Commissioners, Sheriff, and Administrator came to the decision after looking at building plans submitted to either incorporate the current facilities with a new building or building an entirely new structure and demolishing the current jail. A new facility was the preferred option by Sheriff Rob Streck and the county commissioners however due to funding issues plans will be shelved for now, the spokesperson said.
The current Montgomery County Jail was first built in 1964 and had an addition built in 1993, the county spokesperson said in a media release. According to the planning report given to the county, the typical life cycle of a jail is around 30 years.
“The current facility is rated by the state to hold 444 beds, but the number of inmates housed there has more than doubled that capacity in recent years,” the spokesperson said.
“Additionally, the jail currently does not meet the functional or operational requirements of the Sheriff’s Office or its staff, nor does it reflect an environment that is best suited to meet the medical and mental health needs, or the overall wellbeing of our ever-changing population.”
The county’s preferred plan for a new jail would have 938 new beds, divided nearly in half with 464 for general population and 474 for special needs like medical and mental health needs and substance addition.
The plan came with a price tag between $172 million and $202 million which was described as “well out of range” financially for the county.
Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck said the county is in need of a new jail facility because the population of the jail is much different that when it was built.
“We have a much different jail population than we had back when it was built in 1963. Currently, about 85% of the inmates have been charged with a felony. 35% are being monitored for opioid withdrawal with another 34% on psychotropic medications. On top of that, about 17% of the jail population is female which is much higher than it was in the 1960s,” Streck said in the release.
“We need a jail that will better serve our current and our future population of inmates.”
After receiving the option and price tag for the 938 new bed jail, county leaders asked for a different option but that too was too expensive. The alternative estimate was for a new facility to accommodate 854 inmates.
“Yet, the estimate only saves us about $5,000,000. We still do not have that funding available and we will not receive any additional funding from the State to help with jail improvements, so we are in a position where we have to put the plans on hold for now,” County Administrator Michael Colbert said.
Some of the funding that has been secured could be used to modernize the current facility, Colbert said. He added even with proper funding constructing a new jail would be a big financial risk for the county.
“Even if we did have all the financing lined up, it would still be a big risk to take at this time. Going into another year where COVID-19 is still seriously affecting our citizens, the Delta Variant stronger than ever and the Omicron variant quickly gaining ground in our country,” Colbert said.
“We need to continue our conservative approach to our budget and prepare for the economic effects we may see in the form of lower sales taxes revenue due to the ongoing pandemic.”
The county will look into other sources of financing both on the federal and state level, the county spokesperson said.