Jail site update: Vernal Pike landowner wants to sell to Monroe County for new correctional facility

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Craig Cowden, Vernal Pike landowner. (Aug. 14, 2024)

Christa Curtis president of the board of directors for the Greater Ellettsville Area Chamber of Commerce (Aug. 14, 2024)

Eric Spoonmore, president and CEO of the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. (Aug. 14, 2024)

Monroe County commissioners: from left: Lee Jones; Julie Thomas; and Penny Githens. (Aug. 14, 2024)

Craig Cowden would like to sell the Monroe County government 53 acres of his land at Vernal Pike and Woodyard Road west of Bloomington, so that a new county jail can be built there.

Cowden made his pitch at the regular meetings of the county council on Tuesday night and again on Wednesday morning, at the regular meeting of the county commissioners.

County commissioners are currently conducting an investigation of the North Park PUD property as a potential jail site, and are waiting on the results of the Phase 2 environmental study.

Based on their reaction to Cowden’s proposal on Wednesday morning, commissioners are not keen to begin actively considering Cowden’s land, until they have determined if the North Park property is viable.

But at their meeting the previous evening, some county council members seemed somewhat more receptive to the idea of considering Cowden’s land. And Cowden has the backing of both local chambers of commerce. Continue reading “Jail site update: Vernal Pike landowner wants to sell to Monroe County for new correctional facility” →

Planned new jail budget numbers start to come into sharper focus for Monroe County council

A contingent from Care not Cages appeared at the June 25, 2024 Monroe County council meeting to oppose construction of a new jail.

Seated is Chris Ciolli, with Weddle Bros. Construction. Standing at the lectern is Scott Carnegie, with DLZ Corporation (June 25, 2024).

Monroe County councilor Peter Iversen holds up a printed copy of the jail budget estimates presented at Tuesday’s council meeting (June 25, 2024).

At its Tuesday meeting this past week, Monroe County’s council got a briefing that included some estimated hard construction costs for a new jail with different bed counts—400 compared to 500 beds.

The difference in hard construction cost between a 500-bed jail and a 400-bed jail is about $20.2 million. That’s based on 120,000 square feet for a 400-bed facility and 150,000 square feet for a 500-bed facility and a construction cost of $674 per square foot.

The hard construction cost for a 400-bed new jail is estimated at $80.9 million. The current jail has 287 beds.

The additional hard construction cost of a new, 50-percent bigger justice center, to be co-located with a new jail, is estimated at around $78.7 million. That’s based on a 136,848-square-foot facility, at a cost of $575 per square foot. The current justice facilities cover 91,222 square feet.

The all-in cost of a combined new 400-bed jail and a co-located justice facility—which includes 20-percent for “soft costs”—would be about $199.6 million. Soft costs include contingency, professional fees, land purchase, FFE (furniture, fixtures and equipment), bond counsel, permits, printing and the like.

All the numbers came from Chris Ciolli, with Weddle Bros. Construction, and Scott Carnegie, with DLZ Corporation, who briefed the county council on Tuesday.

It was just after a storm blew through the county, leaving many Duke Energy customers without power for a day, some as long as four days. Power was available at the county courthouse on Tuesday evening. Continue reading “Planned new jail budget numbers start to come into sharper focus for Monroe County council” →

New jail location: Monroe County OKs Phase 2 enviro study, hears opposition from Ellettsville

On the map, the green area is the land purchased by the county for a future limestone heritage destination park. The purple pushpin shows the location of the current jail. The other purple areas are currently or have at one time been considered by county commissioners as a jail location. Link to dynamic map: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1ZfbkZoG4GR7KAjii4CVQLtv4hIlUQuM&usp=sharing

Seated at the table from left:Scott Carnegie with DLZ, the county’s design/build consultant, and the three commissioners, Julie Thomas, Lee Jones and Penny Githens. (June 2, 2024)

This past Wednesday, Monroe County commissioners approved a second environmental study for North Park on West Hunter Valley Road, just north of the Bloomington city boundary.

North Park is the location that commissioners are currently considering as a possible location for a new jail.

The Phase 2 study comes after two public meetings held at the Ellettsville fire station—last Sunday (June 2) and Wednesday June 5)—which were hosted by county commissioners.

The fire station meetings confirmed some strong opposition from residents near the proposed jail location. Highlights from the meetings included opposition from Ellettsville leaders, who are concerned that locating a county jail at North Park will have a negative impact on the future economic development of the town.

The meetings also revealed that county elected officials might not have been on the same page on a key question: Who will decide the size of the new jail? Continue reading “New jail location: Monroe County OKs Phase 2 enviro study, hears opposition from Ellettsville” →