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New jail needed in Chisago CountyEditorís note: This is the first in a series about conditions at the county jail as officials consider building a new jail in Chisago County. By Barbara Brown Chisago County pays a significant amount of money each year to other counties to send local prisoners out of the area because the jail built in Center City is not big enough to hold the number of offenders now being processed there. Sheriff Todd Rivard and other county officials will begin the push soon to garner support for a new jail in the county. He said the discussion will center around two main points: the current jail is logistically unsafe and the county is spending money on housing prisoners elsewhere that it could keep here. County Administrator John Moosey said he expects to approach the county board within the next month to present a request for proposals to seek a jail consultant to help organize and design a new jail or justice center for the county. ìShipping all these people out of the county is costing more than it should,î Moosey said. ìIn my mind, this should have been done years ago, but funding is the issue.î ìRight now, we have more customers than we have rooms,î he said. On busy court days, jail employees can spend their entire day moving prisoners back and forth from the jail to the government center to appear in court. A justice center layout would combine a jail building with a courthouse. That kind of plan would free up space in the Chisago County Government Center to keep all the county government offices in one building. Should the county be able to develop a plan to fund the project, Moosey said the planning process could continue this spring and would appear in the 2005 budget. ìThis is not a situation where we can sit back and say ëLetís wait and see if we can get money in 2006,í î Moosey said. ìWe have to do this now.î Last summer KKE Architects were hired as the countyís architecture firm. The company will help with the design of the physical building. However, the county also needs help with the philosophical design of the building ñ how the building and the people working in it should function. That is where the jail consultant comes into the picture, Moosey said. Moosey said the consultantís job will be to meet with various groups including a potential community advisory board, the sheriffís department and other government officials to discuss how the jail or justice center should function. ìI donít think we can do this process without planning for 30 years out,î Moosey said. A previous expansion on the current jail, in the early 1990s was expected to last about six years. So far, ití has lasted twice as long, but the county is back where it started ñ overcrowded and spending money to ship out prisoners. Several obstacles await the group when planning for the jail begins. First, the countyís jail must remain in the county seat. However, the location with the current jail and government center is full. Center City, the county seat, has already expressed interest in keeping the jail in the city, but the trick is to find an appropriate location for it, Moosey said. ìWe canít say weíre going to build a jail and attach it to the government center,î Moosey said, ìbecause we canít do that unless we put it on a pontoon.î Moosey said the jail as well as the countyís government center are maxed out on space and that some employees are working in less than ideal environments. Moosey said he hopes the voters in the county will support the request for a referendum, should the county ask for one. One of the biggest concerns will be how a new justice center will impact their pockets. ìThe county is full of young families with first mortgages and itís a tough time for people,î Moosey said. ìRegardless,î he said, ìI need more space for Health and Human Services and a a jail. Period.î Moosey said the county can save money by not paying to house local prisoners in other facilities outside Chisago County. Also, he said the county can bring in money by taking in prisoners from surrounding counties if the jail is built big enough and look for grants and low-interest loans. He said county staff will take the coming month to seek funding options to present to the board. Next week: A tour of the jail ©ECM Post Review |