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New Wilkes jail up in air as board debates options
Less expensive plans weighed to ease overcrowding
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Published: October 28, 2009
WILKESBORO - Wilkes County commissioners can't agree to spend an estimated $26 million to build a 298-bed jail and law-enforcement center, so they are looking at shorter-term, less expensive options to relieve jail overcrowding.
Commissioners were presented yesterday with a conceptual plan for a new dormitory-style, 144-bed jail that would be built beside the Wilkes County animal shelter. The concrete-block building would be enclosed with a chain-link fence and razor wire.
Commissioners didn't reach a consensus during the work session, which was the first time that they had seen the plan, but they agreed to consider it further at next Tuesday's board meeting.
"Time is of the essence," said Zach Henderson, the board chairman. "Every day we don't do something, we're going to risk being shut down by the jail inspector or ship prisoners out of the county with money we don't have."
The cost of building, furnishing and equipping a new jail would be about $4 million, sheriff's officials said. Construction would take about a year, once approvals are granted, but it's not clear whether the state would allow a dormitory-style jail.
The plan calls for the closing of the women's jail in North Wilkesboro. Female inmates would be housed in a 40-bed section of the new building. The current men's jail would remain open, and the new jail would house overflow inmates who are serving time for convictions.
Wilkes County Sheriff Dane Mastin said that the new plan doesn't make sense economically, given the construction costs and operating the new building and the old jail concurrently.
Mastin said that the idea for a temporary jail started as a way to build a small structure for about $30,000 to $40,000 to buy some time until officials could decide what to do about a new, long-term jail. Things snowballed from there, he said, with the plans getting larger and more expensive.
Mastin said that one consideration is to reduce the size of the building and use it as a work camp, housing inmates who would do tasks such as picking up trash or caring for animals at the shelter, while still moving forward with a permanent jail. The dormitory-style building would consist primarily of five large rooms. Among ideas floated during the work session was to use it until a permanent jail was built, and then adapt it for use as a new base for emergency medical services or as additional space for the animal shelter.
The work session included a lot of back-and-forth discussion as commissioners talked about reducing the size of the building, and getting more financial information.
"What do you want from us?" Mastin asked.
Commissioners said more work sessions may be scheduled.
"We're trying to come up with something that will work," Henderson said. "The problem, in my view, is we're going to have to do something, and it's going to have to be soon. The question is what?"
Commissioners received a low bid of $22.5 million last spring to build a 298-bed jail and law-enforcement center next to the county courthouse. The jail would meet the county's needs for the next 30 or so years, officials said. Furnishings and other items put the cost at an estimated $26 million.
mmitchell@wsjournal.com
667-5691
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