Proposed bill could influence where Oklahoma County builds its new jail

Could Oklahoma's Legislature be wading into the debate about where to build Oklahoma County's next jail?

Oklahoma City state Rep. Jason Lowe thinks so after the House of Representatives' County and Municipal Government Committee this week unanimously recommended approval of a measure authored by state Rep. Josh Cantrell, R-Kingston.

Were it to become law, House Bill 3758 would double the distance required between any new jail and a public or private school, effectively blocking any chance of building a new jail in downtown Oklahoma City, supporters of that idea say.

Lowe, a Democrat representing Oklahoma City who is joining other community activists in attempting to convince Oklahoma County's Board of County Commissioners to build the jail downtown, held a news conference Wednesday at the Capitol to question the bill's motivation.

More: 'Fish or cut bait': Clock ticking on OK County commissioners to select site for new jail

They argue Oklahoma County should keep the jail close to its courthouse, as well as to nearby public transportation and social service organizations.

“This bill isn’t addressing a problem that exists. The current jail is within 2,000 feet of two schools, and we have never, ever had a problem," Lowe said.

"This isn't about protecting schools or children," he said. "This is an effort to remove the current downtown location from consideration and pave the way for new commercial development of that property."

Community activist Josh Eddy and Claudia Browne, an elected member of Del City's city council, agreed.

Eddy said Oklahoma County could build a two-story jail with as many as 2,000 beds on less than 20 acres, similar to what Tulsa County has done.

About 25 acres of land could be used downtown for a new jail, Eddy said.

He described Cantrell's bill as an example of big-government overreach from a legislator who champions small government and represents an area more than 100 miles away from Oklahoma City.

The bill "would bind the hands of 700,000 Oklahoma County residents from being able to decide where they want their jail that they are paying for to go. This is an underhanded effort to take that (decision) out of the hands of people," Eddy said.

Browne said Del City and its 22,000 residents "would not be able to absorb all of the extras that come along with a brand new, 60-acre Alcatraz of a jail" in its backyard.

"We can not handle that," Browne said. "This is a direct attack on the people who are saying no to 1901 E Grand and are saying to keep the jail downtown."

New county jail projects like Oklahoma County's would face increased distance requirements

House Bill 3758 would impact any new city, county or state correctional building built after Nov. 1.

If made law, it would require at least 2,000 feet be between any public or private school campus (the current restriction stands at 1,000 feet) and the correctional facility.

Projects it could impact include any inmate work center, inmate drug offender work camp, inmate halfway house, inmate transitional living center or any other place where state, county or municipal inmates are housed.

The bill also adds language that clarifies that distance must be measured from property line to property line, not from front door to front door.

The existing law does, however, allow for an exception in a case where either private school directors or public school board members authorize a proposed project. As proposed, the bill would leave that provision of state law in place.

The Oklahoma County jail's current location at 201 N Shartel Ave. is 1,400 feet away from John Rex Elementary School at Sheridan and Walker avenues and about 1,900 feet from Emerson Alternative School, at NW 6 and Walker Avenue.

Who is the lawmaker proposing the law that could block building a future jail downtown?

Rep. Cantrell represents Oklahomans living in Ardmore, Burneyville, Dickson, Greenville, Healdton, Kingston, Lebanon, Leon, Lone Grove, Madill, Marietta, Oakland, Thackerville and Wilson.

Elected to Oklahoma's Legislature in 2022, Cantrell is a past member and chairman of Marshall County's Board of County Commissioners and has served as a member of the legislative committee for the Association of Oklahoma County Commissioners.

Wednesday afternoon, Cantrell released a statement saying he proposed the bill to "reduce the likelihood of recently released individuals walking around our children's schools and playgrounds."

Cantrell said it also would significantly lessen the chance a jail escape could force a lockdown on nearby schools.

Pressure mounts on Oklahoma County commissioners as they search for new jail location

Oklahoma County faces increasing time pressures as it tries to secure land from a willing seller and approval from the city council of Oklahoma City to build a new jail to replace its current long-troubled facility.

So far, Oklahoma County only has offered to buy a piece of property near SW 54 and Newcastle Road from the Oklahoma City Airport Trust for $2.5 million, hoping to build the new jail there.

But the Federal Aviation Administration nixed that plan.

For a time, Oklahoma County Commissioner Myles Davidson proposed using land on the west side of Stockyards City as a potential jail location, but decided against pursuing a deal there after most land owners told him and other county officials they were not interested in selling.

More recently, Davidson has been working on a proposed three-way land swap involving Crooked Oak Public Schools and Oklahoma City to make it more feasible for Oklahoma County to build its new jail at 1901 E Grand Blvd., just west of Del City.

The proposed bill would not jeopardize that plan if it were to become law because the nearest school, Crooked Oak's main campus, is nearly 3,000 feet away.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma lawmaker wants more distance between jails, schools