Report: New jail would cost county hundreds of millions

Jan. 22—A new 1,056-bed Howard County jail that would meet the county's current and projected future needs would cost around $200 million to build, according to a feasibility study and needs assessment, but county officials aren't sold the county needs that big of a jail and are even more hesitant to spend such an amount.

That's one bit of information out of many included in a report released in July by DLZ, an Indianapolis-based design and consulting firm.

The company was hired by Howard County Commissioners in early 2023 to complete the report, which has been talked about by elected officials in private but has never been detailed or discussed extensively in public before now.

The report includes detailed visual observations on the current condition of the county jail, which is now more than 30 years old, its deficiencies, a needs forecast through 2045 and cost estimates to either expand the current jail by 400 beds or build a completely new one that has either 880 or 1,056 beds.

county's current jail

The Howard County Jail, located at 1800 W. Markland Ave., was built in 1993 at a price tag of about $18 million ($33 million when adjusted for inflation) after the county faced lawsuits from inmates alleging they were subject to "miserable" and unconstitutional living conditions.

Before building the new jail, a federal court at the time ordered the county keep the inmate population below 101. In the early 1990s, the county jail had an average daily inmate population of 130.

According to the county, the jail's average daily population in 2021 was 457. It was 487 at the end of 2022, 134% above capacity. The facility is rated for 364 beds.

The inmate population, though, has decreased over the last year. As of Thursday, the jail's population was 347. That is still technically "overcrowded" as the Indiana Department of Corrections classifies an overcrowded jail as one exceeds 80% capacity. That's because at over 80% capacity, it becomes tough to segregate certain inmate populations.

At the time of its construction, the county jail was state-of-the-art and the first jail in the state to implement an "open concept," or direct supervision model, according to Tribune archives. Then-Sheriff John D. Beatty said the new jail had boosted the morale of inmates, deputies and corrections officers.

But more than 30 years later — at around the same age the county's previous jail was replaced — the Howard County Jail is beginning to show its age.

According to the DLZ report, the jail, in general, is in "fair to poor condition," and many of its components are outdated and in need of replacement or inadequate for modern needs.

The inmate showers, according to the report, are in poor condition, the jail cell toilets and sinks are porcelain when they should be detention grade stainless steel; the jail's kitchen is small for the approximately 500,000 meals a year served and many doors in the secured area are not detention grade, have failed and several of them and their frames are rusting.

The jail also does not have an electronic water management system that would allow corrections officers to manage and control water flow, preventing inmates from passing contraband or flooding their cells.

The jail's dayroom mezzanines do not have vertical screens to protect from falls; staff work posts are in poor condition and the staff quarters and amenities for a jail this size are "limited," according to the report.

In addition, the jail has issues with leaks from its water pipes, according to the report.

In summary, DLZ writes, the county jail has "some anticipated life expectancy remaining to still be an (e)ffective facility. However, significantly more rated beds are needed now."

completely new jail

According to DLZ, a 1,056 rated bed jail would cost the county between $165 million to $175 million in construction costs. That's not including another 20% in "soft" costs, i.e., planning and administrative costs, bringing the total to between $198 million and $210 million, not including increases due to inflation or costs of goods increases.

The company, in the report, said it used "inmate data and trends over the past several years," as well as county demographics, bookings, releases, average daily jail population and average length of stay to come up with its recommendations.

DLZ's proposal for the 1,056-bed jail calls for building a modern 270,000- to 310,000-square-feet jail to deal with inmates with mental health issues and addiction.

That includes specific housing units for mentally-ill inmates, de-escalation rooms, detoxification units, a "step-down" system for suicide prevention, a more "therapeutic" environment that has access to spaces with fresh air, sunlight and the offering of structured programming.

For job retention, DLZ proposes modern and large workout and training rooms for staff, as well as incorporating as much natural light as possible in staff areas and intake and booking areas.

The 1,056 rated bed jail is the most expensive and extensive option DLZ proposes.

Its report offers two other cheaper options — expanding the jail to add 400 rated beds and building a 880 rated new jail — at costs of $35 million to $40 million and $140 million to $150 million, respectively. Those figures do not include "soft costs," which would approximately add 20% of cost to those totals.

Notably not included in the report are costs to extensively renovate the jail or the cost to do a mixture of adding beds and renovating. Also missing is any mechanism to finance any extension of the existing jail or construction of a new jail.

What the sheriff wants

Howard County Sheriff Jerry Asher has been clear in the past about his desire for a new jail, but he told the Tribune he doesn't think the county needs as big of a jail as the one DLZ recommends.

How big of a jail does he think the county needs?

"I would rely on the experts that deal with these things every day, but I think we're going to at least be around a 600 to 700 (bed) range," Asher said. "I don't think the 800 or 1,000 bed facility is necessary."

Asher's proposal also includes renovating the current jail so it can be the new home of the county's work release program, which is currently housed in the county's old jail building, 623 S. Berkeley Road.

The new space would allow the work release program to expand its capacity. Currently, the program has a capacity of 120 beds, 80 for males and 40 for females.

For the new jail, Asher said he also wants the county to move back to an indirect supervision style jail because it's less labor intensive and it's the format the vast majority of in-state counties are implementing.

In addition, the sheriff would like to see a specific area and cells for inmates dealing with mental health issues.

"We house most of our mental health situations in the book-in area, and that's not what that area is designed for," Asher said. "So building a new facility, we can have a medical wing and have some of those different things for the mental health part because that is a huge, huge problem in our county and pretty much every county."

Where would the new jail be built?

That's one of the biggest unknowns for Asher's proposal. The county currently doesn't own property big enough to build a new 600- to 700-bed jail. The cost to implement Asher's proposal is also currently unknown.

For answers to that question and more, Asher said a jail committee is being formed. Its first meeting is scheduled for the end of this month.

OFFICIALS REACT

While the DLZ report makes it clear the company believes the county needs a newer and larger jail, not all county officials agree with that sentiment, or, at the very least, they want more information before making any decision.

"I'd like to be sure there is no way that we can renovate (the jail) and keep the costs down for the taxpayers," Councilwoman Martha Lake, R-at large, said. "We want a jail that passes inspection. We want a jail that is safe for both the prisoners and the people who are working there. We want it to be efficient. At the same time, I just want to be sure a new jail is exactly what we need, especially with the cost we're looking at."

Many county officials told the Tribune they were left with sticker stock after receiving the study by DLZ.

"I think we all left that night with our jaws on the floor," County Council Vice President Daryl Maple, R-at large, said about learning of the cost estimates given by DLZ.

Maple told the Tribune that he, too, would like to see more options for renovation before committing such a large amount of money.

What the County Council is willing to do is paramount to what, or what doesn't happen, when it comes to a new or renovated jail as the elected board is the sole authority over issuing any bond debt or tax increases for financing purposes.

To be clear, the county has taken no significant steps to either renovate the current jail or build a new jail.

The deteriorating condition of the jail and the fact it's often overcrowded have been known issues for the last several years, but the price of extensive renovation or building a new jail has kept any major action to extensively renovate or build a new jail at bay, at least for now.

The county also wanted to let its community corrections programs, such as work release, and the county's magistrate judge, who handles initial hearings for those arrested, run their course and hopefully alleviate the jail's overcrowding issue.

After a slow start, the initiatives, especially after the County Council approved the hiring of a dedicated public defender and prosecutor for the magistrate court, appear to be having an impact.

Still, the jail's consistent overcrowding issue may force the county's hand one way or another.

As previously reported by the Tribune, the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, on behalf of an inmate, is suing the county and Asher for what it describes as a "chronically and seriously overcrowded" jail that violates the U.S. Constitution.

The ACLU is asking a federal court to order that the county make any and all improvements to the jail so that it complies with the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit is currently in litigation.

The lawsuit is reminiscent of a similar one filed against the old jail a little more than 30 years ago — also by the ACLU of Indiana — that led to the county building its current jail.

Tyler Juranovich can be reached at 765-454-8577, by email at tyler.juranovich@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @tylerjuranovich.