~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline
The construction of a new county jail has been stalled by rising costs.
After attending a meeting about the construction of the new jail, county supervisor Dan Benitz at the supervisors’ Aug. 12 meeting asked sheriff Jack Williams where the project is headed.
Williams said the project is $2,000,000 over budget. He said changes have been made in the project that are not affecting the number of beds and he is waiting to see new cost figures.
“I was hoping the economy was starting to help us a little bit,” board chair John Muir said.
Benitz said he’d asked at the smaller meeting whether “we’ve been used a little on price-fixing.” Benitz said he didn’t get a good answer to that but “I know that stuff isn’t cheap, and it keeps going up.”
Muir asked if the project is still on schedule and Williams said it could be, if the changes can get the costs down.
Benitz asked about additional financing procedures if needed, such as a vote for additional money. After discussion, Benitz was later told the amount already approved has to be the limit. Voters approved up to $10 million for the new jail in the city/school election last November.
Muir summarized the situation: “We know we need a new facility, and we know it needs to be bigger, and we know we have a limit on how much we can spend.”
