WILKESBORO — Wilkes County commissioners today authorized Sheriff Dane Mastin to send male inmates to jails in other counties to relieve crowding at the Wilkes County jail.
The men's jail, which has 68 beds, has housed as many as 105 inmates during recent spikes in usage. With a four-week session of Superior Court set to start Sept. 14, Mastin told commissioners he worried there could be so many inmates it would put the county at risk for liability.
The commissioners agreed by consensus during a work session to allow inmates to be housed in other counties if there are at least 90 inmates in the Wilkes jail.
Mastin told commissioners that the least expensive place he's found so far is the Alleghany County jail, which would charge $49 per day per inmate. At least for now, he said, the jail there could offer as many as 25 beds.
Wilkes County would take the money from $1.4 million budgeted this year to make payments on planned new jail construction.
Plans for the new jail are on hold as commissioners decided what to do. In April, they voted 5-0 to reject bids for a new 298-bed jail and law-enforcement center because they couldn't agree to borrow an estimated $26 million for the project. The new jail is projected to meet needs for the next 20 to 30 years.
Sending the inmates to other counties is a temporary solution, Mastin told commissioners. There were 99 inmates in the men's jail last night. Inmates who don't have bed space sleep on mattresses on the floor.
County officials are continuing to consider what to do about the new jail, as well as other short-term solutions.
One idea they discussed is housing inmates in a metal Quonset hut that could be built beside the county's animal control shelter, which is near the courthouse. Once the new jail is built, the Quonset hut could be used to relieve crowding at the animal shelter.
They're considering other locations for the Quonset hut as well. Inmates would be housed barracks-style, and security would be provided by a fence and guards.
They also discussed developing a prison farm, where inmates would engage in some sort of labor, such as growing plants for sale or going out on work details. Sheriff's officials and county staffers will research some of the costs.
The commissioners said they plan to hold another work session in the near future.
"We have some options," board Chairman Zach Henderson said. "We're going to explore that and see what to do."
County Commissioner Gary Blevins said he favored providing some sort of satellite jail that would keep inmates in the county, so that the money would stay in Wilkes County.
Mastin reminded commissioners that whatever short-term solution they adopt, they still need to decide what to do about the proposed new jail.
"This still does not solve your issue with the jail," he said. "It is going to continue to be a problem."
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