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LGC Says No to Proposed Jail Expansion a Second Time

Franklin County Detention Center won't be expanded and the existing problems at the facility won't be resolved either - at least, not unless the County Commissioners are willing to send the matter to county residents for approval.

Original expansion plans calling for the addition of 384 beds at the Detention Center were shot down by the LGC this past June on grounds that it was too ambitious a plan that well overshoots the county's needs. County Sheriff Pat Green didn't argue the fact that the plans called for more beds than were needed for county inmates, but explained that the additional beds would be used to house federal inmates - a practice which has generated a great deal of revenue for the county in the past. The county spends approximately $20 per day/per inmate to provide for their basic needs while incarcerated. The federal marshall's office pays approximately $60 per day/per inmate to facilities which are willing and able to house federal inmates. Such a lucrative revenue source seems to make expansion plans an easy "yes" for commissioners, but there's a hitch.

The problem lies in the fact that the Federal Marshall's office won't provide any kind of written commitment to continue sending their inmates to the county Detention Center. Without such a commitment, county commissioners, LGC members, and even the county's voters are leary of expending between $18-$36 million dollars - and rightly so.

The June denial from the LGC suggested that a reduction in the scope of the expansion plan would gain their approval. In response, the county opted to look at revising the expansion plans to reduce the number of new beds it would provide. Meanwhile, the Federal Marshall's office has been losing patience with Franklin County's inability to provide assurances that more beds are coming. They have begun sending their inmates to other facilities, thus reducing the revenue stream coming into the County jail.

This past month, the LGC denied the reduced expansion proposal, indicating the the matter would need to go before the voters before any kind of approval will be forthcoming from their Board. County insiders don't believe that County Commissioners will allow the matter to be brought before voters because they're convinced voters will never approve the new debt, which would likely come in the form of General Obligation (GO) bonds.