First and foremost this is solely the opinion of Marc Huber only. It is not intended to be interpreted as anything else or the opinion of others.
Our existing county jail has been over its functional capacity limits for decades. In 2010, Schenkel & Schultz performed a jail study that showed the need for expansion of the criminal justice facilities. At that time their professional opinion was to expand the downtown campus. The county leadership at the time kicked the can down the road and the problems continued to escalate at an alarming rate.
In 2015 the commissioners requested another study be done by RQAW due to the extreme over capacity at the jail and needs of other departments for more space. In mid-2016 the report was completed and reconfirmed the 2010 study. The commissioners moved forward with a conceptual, downtown architectural design to include architects’ construction estimates that would meet the needs of the jail, community corrections, probation, prosecutor’s office, and the potential for a fourth court that would take care of the needs of the county for 20 to 30 years.
After a year of joint meetings with county departments, several open public input meetings, during day and evening hours, and the public meetings required by law it was determined that we needed a referendum for a criminal justice project. The county council funded the architectural design and also the schematic design for this proposed project that totaled close to $1 million. After several updates to the council and commissioners by RQAW the final schematic design report was presented on May 15 of this year.
Due to the referendum failing by a small margin we had to reassess how to fund this much-needed project. On June 5, the commissioners passed a resolution requesting the county council fund the project detailing 5-plus reasons the project was needed. At that time it was estimated that for every day we waited it cost the taxpayers of the county approximately $7,500 per day in the rising cost of construction and inflation.
On June 6, the commissioners met in executive session with the five homeowners who would be affected by the new jail construction to discuss their concerns and get their opinion of the project.
All of a sudden, after nearly eight years of discussion, about needing increased facilities for the criminal justice facility on a downtown campus, and $1 million in taxpayer money spent on cost estimates and schematic design, on June 19 the county council said they would fund a jail for $30 million but it had to be built at the county farm, which will require more money spent on design and cost estimates. The reason given for the change was the City of Greenfield did not want any jail and/or prisoners within the city limits.
The commissioners keep confirming the most cost effective and efficient location for the criminal justice complex is on a downtown campus. After I met with the mayor and presented the plan to him, the commissioners requested to be put on the city council agenda for Aug. 22. At that meeting, the commissioners tried to explain the situation and the additional expense that ALL taxpayers would pay for due to the inefficiencies of not having a downtown campus. This would include an estimated $500,000 per year in additional employees and vehicles to transport inmates to court, the undetermined additional expense of needing to operate two kitchens to feed the inmates due to the distance between locations, and the increased safety concerns of transporting inmates that frequently in such a large number.
Also moving the jail out of town would require a long-term plan to build a complete criminal justice facility at this new location abandoning many of the existing county buildings downtown. At today’s numbers that architects estimate is a total project cost of over $100 million, what would that cost be in 5 to 10 years? This doesn’t include the many inefficiencies that the prosecutor and probation offices would face. We also conveyed to them that in 2017, the Greenfield Police Department booked in a little over 600 individuals and all the other agencies in the county including the Indiana State Police and Department of Natural Resources booked in a little over 700 total.
Once again the commissioners confirmed that the most cost-effective and efficient location for the criminal justice project is downtown. The jail has been in downtown Greenfield since the late 1800s, Greenfield is the county seat and is the biggest individual agency that uses the facility in the county. The commissioners are willing to try and make a facility architecturally appealing to the eye to ensure the continued growth of the downtown and contrary to popular belief the proposed design is nowhere near as tall as the courthouse. Actually, when the commissioners heard that was a concern we enlarged the footprint and reduced the original proposed height by nearly 15 feet. The studies have been done, the downtown campus that has been proposed for over eight years is still the most cost-effective to the taxpayer and most efficient for the users, the cost estimates have been determined, and the existing design is ready to be sent out for bid to get numbers that can be locked in.
The biggest issue that is being neglected while all of these elected officials are at odds with each other is the need for drug addiction & mental health treatment programs and the facilities to conduct them in. If all of the elected officials involved would stop with the personal agendas and have the best interest of all 72,000-plus taxpaying citizens of Hancock County in their minds and hearts and do what’s needed, we could use the $500,000 to $1 million annually the forced relocation by the city would cost and the county council is willing to fund that much in inefficiencies annually. That $500,000 to $1 million annually could be used to make a real difference by helping treat mental illness and drug addictions. This investment would reduce the county’s obscene recidivism rate, enhance the workforce, enhance safety, enhance the tax base, and enhance families for generations by breaking the cycle.
It is time for the county and city governments to collaborate together to make a difference in our community that will be realized for generations to come. We all need to be efficient, cost effective, and conservative with the taxpayers’ dollars.
Marc Huber is a Hancock County Commissioner. Send comments to [email protected].
