Cheboygan County moving forward with juvenile detention cells expansion
Cheboygan County is moving forward with a project to construct two juvenile detention holding cells in the county jail, making it the first county in the state to have this type of facility.
The sheriff's department put the project out for bids, seeking a firm to do the architectural and engineering services and putting the construction documents together. This firm would also handle the project bidding and construction contract administration for the building of the two cells.
"We did receive one bid in the amount of $31,792," said Cheboygan County Administrator Jeff Lawson. "That will be on the board's next agenda Aug. 9 for consideration for approval."
The company will put together a design of how the two holding cells should be constructed and configured in the sally port area to accommodate the minors who will be housed there.
The project will then be put out for bids, seeking a construction company to remodel one of the jail's current sally ports, which is one of the garages used by the facility. It is adjacent to the current jail, but the youth who will be kept in that area will not be in with the general population of inmates.
The project is a collaboration between the Cheboygan County Sheriff's Department and the county's probate court office. Cheboygan County Sheriff Dale Clarmont and Cheboygan County Probate Court Judge Daryl Vizina have been working together to address the need in the community.
Last month, Vizina spoke to the county commission regarding several cases involving juveniles who needed to be detained. However, there were no facilities around the area where this could be done. He said this need will continue to increase in the future.
More: Cheboygan County Jail to become first in state with juvenile holding cells
Cheboygan County has received the licensing needed through the State of Michigan to have these holding cells at its facility. When completed, it will bring a cost savings to the county, as the county currently has to house younger offenders out of state until they can be sentenced or receive the help they need.
These offenders are currently being transferred to Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, or other states, where there are facilities that can house them. The holding cells in Cheboygan County will help address the need in not only Cheboygan County, but other surrounding communities.
Lawson said the county was fortunate to be able to receive one bid from a company to complete this work.
Cheboygan County Undersheriff Tim Cook made some calls to other areas where the company — Sidock Group, which has an office in Gaylord — has done projects in the past to get some background information on them. The company is an engineering firm.
"It looks like they had some background very similar to our project," said Lawson.
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The Sidock Group will be providing the county with an AIA, or American Institute of Architects, contract agreement to be reviewed by the county's legal counsel. The AIA agreement is a form that is standard with many municipal construction projects, outlining the basis of payment for the work to be completed. It also outlines the terms of the contract and what happens if there are any damages, or if the project is not completed.
Once this has been reviewed by legal counsel and approved by the county commissioners at their next meeting, the project can move into the phase of creating the specifications and bid documents.
Contact Reporter Kortny Hahn at khahn1@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @khahnCDT.
This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Juvenile holding cells project moving forward in Cheboygan County
