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New facility with jail a key issue in Wilkes
by Jule Hubbard and Charles S. Williams
Plans for a new Wilkes County Jail with a law enforcement center emerged as one of the key issues among candidates for three of the five county commissioner seats.
Early in 2009, commissioners are expected to decide whether to put the project out for bid and whether to proceed with plans advanced by the board in February. Those plans call for building a two-story facility with capacity for 298 inmates on county-owned land next to the county courthouse in Wilkesboro.
Commissioners voted 4-1 in February to have Knoxville, Tenn.-based Cope Associates Inc. draw blueprints for the 298-bed jail and law enforcement center. Commissioner Fay Byrd, defeated in the Republican primary, cast the lone dissenting vote.
Incumbents Charles Sink and Keith Elmore, both Republicans, are among the seven candidates on the ballot. Sink is chairman. The other two commissioners, Republican Zach Henderson and Democrat Luther Parks, aren’t up for re-election this year.
Also on the ballot for county commissioner are Republican Gary Blevins; Democrats Joe Anthony, Matt Ledford and Michael Holleman and unaffiliated candidate Tom Bowman.
N.C. Division of Facility Services staff received the completed plans from Cope and, after reviewing them, are expected to approve and release the plans to county officials as soon as December.
Plans for the 298-bed jail and law enforcement center resulted from work of a committee appointed by commissioners two years ago, followed by months of discussion among commissioners about specifics of the facility.
State jail inspectors are pressuring Wilkes officials to replace the county’s 39-year-old jail. It has a 69-inmate capacity that often is exceeded by having inmates sleep on mattresses on the floor. County officials have said that consolidating sheriff’s department’s operations from seven different buildings now into the new law enforcement center would save money in the long run and free up space needed by other county departments.
Before he left his job as Wilkes County manager to become Rowan County manager in April, Gary Page told Wilkes commissioners how they could avoid raising taxes if they borrowed $31 million to build a $28.5 million law enforcement center and jail and a $1.5 million Wilkes Emergency Medical Service base nearby and have $500,000 for unexpected expenses and $500,000 for bond financing closing costs.
Page said that after county government finished paying off a $9.5 million debt this June that was incurred in June 1997 to build the 70,000-square-foot county courthouse, the 24,000-square-foot county library in North Wilkesboro and a new Wilkes Community College building, the $1.2 million annual payments on this debt could be shifted to the debt for the new jail and law enforcement center.
The $9.5 million included $7.8 million for the courthouse, $1 million for the library and $700,000 for the WCC building. The library actually cost about $3 million and there were additional expenses for the WCC building.
Page said the plan also included getting $1 million annually for debt payments from housing 50 federal pre-trial prisoners each year, which officials said should be possible in a new jail with 298 rather than 250 beds.
Cost of the 120,000-square-foot facility with 298 jail beds was estimated at $28.5 million in February, but county officials said it could be less now because economic conditions have lowered construction costs and interest rates.
Commissioners focused much of their jail discussions earlier this year on whether to cut the size and cost of the facility by reducing its inmate capacity. After learning from a Cope architect that a facility with a 250-bed jail would cost about $27.04 million, compared to $28.5 million for a 298-bed facility, commissioners decided the savings weren’t enough to justify the reduced space for inmates.
Commissioners were told that a 250-bed jail would only last 10 to 12 years due to expected inmate growth, but that a 298-bed jail should meet the county’s needs for about 25 years. Also, the 298-bed facility could be expanded to house about 100 more inmates.
The architect’s plans for facilities with both 298-bed and 250-bed jails also have 7,826 square feet for sheriff’s administration, 9,881 square feet for investigations, 7,936 square feet for law enforcement and 1,983 square feet for communications.
Commissioners are expected to decide whether to build with traditional brick and mortar or with pre-formed concrete walls when bids were sought. County officials said industry conditions at the time bids are sought would determine cost-effectiveness of the two options.
The seven commissioner candidates made the following comments on the new jail and law enforcement center in interviews this week:
Joe C. Anthony
“A building costing in the $28 million bracket is just outrageous for the county at the present time. We need to cut that in half and then think about building a jail.
“We need a law enforcement center for the county, but we can cut the number of beds. If the county grows more, we can add to it. We can cut the size of the building as well as some of the luxuries. We need to take a close look at the blueprints.”
Michael Holleman
“The problem is that there are counties around us that have bond ratings at or above our rating that put construction jobs out for bid, and no one touched them. Until the economy stabilizes and rights itself, I don’t see how we can do any projects because no one will loan the money.
“We have to face the inadequacies of our jail, but we have to look at reducing the cost. We can’t afford a $30 million building, and the price would be doubled by the time it was paid off. If we stay in the running for the state prison, then we could contract with the same companies that are building that prison and get them to build a smaller facility for us that meets our needs. We could save significant money by ordering supplies in bulk.”
“It would not be feasible to add on to what we have. I also don’t think we need the number of beds that are being proposed, and we can’t build with the understanding that we are going to lease a number of the beds to the state. We need to take care of the needs of Wilkes and make it as cost effective as possible for the taxpayers.”
Matt Ledford
“I won’t vote for a $30 million law enforcement center. We need a jail, but I don’t think we can afford to spend that much. I would be open to suggestions on how to cut the price and then approach the situation.
“I think one reasonable suggestion is to build what we need now and add on later. I’d be more than happy to spend money to get an architect to come out and tell us what we need and get a better evaluation of the options we have, especially if it means saving millions of dollars. We could save $12 to $15 million.”
Gary Blevins
“I think that the state will mandate that we need more beds at the law enforcement center. The working conditions for the employees at the old jail are very bad.
“We will have to come up with a plan that meets the state requirements without spending excess revenues. I can’t make any claims about the final cost, but it will not be excessive. But clearly we have to do something. I support law enforcement but the county has a number of priorities that must be addressed in addition to those needs.”
Keith Elmore
“I tried to do everything I could do on this project. The jail committee was appointed, and we had public hearings. I wish some of these other candidates who are running had shown up and maybe they would have better understood the issue. I talked with the sheriff and the members of the jail committee, and it can be a struggle when everyone comes in telling you what they need.
“(Former county manager) Gary Page had experience building jails and schools. He said we could build a jail for $18 million, so that’s why I was trying to get it down to that. I don’t know how it ballooned to $24 to $28 million. You try to get the price down, but what can you do when you don’t have a majority?”
Charles Sink
“I’m not the best one to talk with about facts and figures. But the law enforcement center is something we have to look at. We’re not committed to anything yet, but we need to do what is best for the county.
“Re-using the current jail is not an option. We’ve had architects and state inspectors look at it, ad we can’t retrofit a facility that old and make it work.
“There are different methods of building a jail such as standard construction vs. a modular design. All aspects will be considered. The architects will look at the most cost effective way of building this jail.
“Most importantly, we need to remember that this is not (only) a jail. This is a law enforcement center. The sheriff’s department is now spread out among seven different locations. It won’t be a jail but his office and his center for all of his operations. We need for them to be closer together for efficiency. We have been able to maintain what we have through ingenuity but we are not far away from being told we have to have a new jail.
“Now is the time to get the best price for a new facility. There would be numerous contractors out there looking for work, and the price of materials seems to be coming down. If we do only a part of it, by the time we finish it we would already be full and back at the same spot we are now.
“But we’re trying to look at what works best, and we will be cost effective and meet the needs of Wilkes County. Most importantly, we will not add any more burden to the taxpayers. At least I’m not for raising taxes to pay for a new jail.”
Tom Bowman
“We have high unemployment and high taxation, so we don’t have a lot of slack for a huge project like a $60 million jail. We do need a jail to expand the number of beds, but we can use the old one wisely and look at alternative solutions. The current jail has a steel frame, so there could be a second story, and it could be retrofitted for women and younger prisoners. We could build a cut-down version as well… a 150-bed facility on the Call Property using pre-fab or modular technology for the older male population with room to expand when times get better.
“Our county is sitting on an $83 million debt with principal and interest for construction, and we’re paying off $6 million a year. The library and courthouse will be paid off next July 1. Why in the world, in these hard times, would we want to tack on another $60 million with principal and interest?” |
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