Clay County still awaiting final approval from the USDA to begin construction on a new jail facility as environmental studies have been completed.
Sheriff Brandon Boone said the project faced significant delays because the specific department within the USDA responsible for the approval was affected by a federal government shutdown. Architects also had to relocate the physical plant on the property.
“One of the studies came back that there was a small little area that was a wetland, so it required the architects to move the physical plant down a little bit on the property and resubmit that to USDA,” Boone said.
Boone said the proposed design for the new jail currently features 72 beds, a reduction from an initial 100-bed proposal. Boone said the county currently averages between 44 and 45 inmates but must transport many of them to six different facilities across the region because the local jail cannot accommodate them.
“We spend a lot of time logistically transporting inmates from six different facilities to court,” Boone said. “So we’re traveling… one facility is 2 hours and 15 minutes one way. So it’s a five-hour trip just to get an inmate to court.”
Boone said the county has needed a new facility since he began working there 20 years ago and noted that local newspaper archives show the county commission was planning a new jail as far back as 1986. Boone said the current facility was built in 1963 and creates significant liability for the county because it lacks the space to properly house female inmates or separate felons from those charged with misdemeanors.
“We’ve just been very fortunate here in Clay County that we’ve not had the lawsuit that’s cost us to have to build one,” Boone said. “You know, a lot of counties get sued federally and a federal judge steps in and tells the county what they’re going to build, when they’re going to build it, and this is how much you’re going to spend.”
Boone said the county spends approximately $200,000 annually to house inmates in other counties, in addition to the costs of fuel and officer time for transports. Boone said a will tax established in 2020 has already generated more than $2.3 million that is held in a reserve account specifically for the construction and operation of the new jail.
“I understand the community and the citizens’ frustration because I’ve been frustrated along with them,” Boone said. “Because ultimately, if we get sued, my name’s on the top of the paper.”
Boone said the county previously had to downsize the project and find a new location after an earlier design resulted in bids that were over the budget. Boone said the county commission will likely hire a construction management company to oversee the project once the federal approval is secured.
“I would hope by, you know, the start of winter, maybe they can we can see some groundbreaking, but I don’t know for definite,” Boone said.