Tag: Ruben Marté

Clash over role of future Monroe County jail transition director, possible post-holiday resolution

At their regular Wednesday morning meeting, Monroe County commissioners approved two additional studies of the Thomson PUD property, which is currently being considered as a potential new jail site.

A Phase 2 environmental study, as well as a wetlands delineation, are both to be done by VET Environmental Engineering, for a total of about $20,000.

Even if commissioners have stressed that no decision on a future new jail site has been made, those two studies mark a bit of progress towards the eventual construction of a new jail to replace the facility at 7th Street and College Avenue.  The current jail has been analyzed by a consultant as failing to provide constitutional levels of care.

Not getting any airtime at the commissioners meeting on Wednesday was significant discord that has emerged between the sheriff’s office and the commissioners—about filling a position to direct the transition to a new jail facility.

But that discord looks like it could be on a schedule for some kind of resolution, starting with a joint meeting of the county commissioners and the county council on Monday, Nov. 27.

At the county council’s Tuesday night meeting, council president Kate Wiltz  looked to the end of the month as a timeframe for resolving the sore points.

As a chance to work through some concerns and possibly get a transition director’s contract approved, Wiltz pointed to already scheduled meetings on three successive days—Nov. 27 (joint), Nov. 28 (county council), and Nov. 29 (county commissioners).

The new controversy was aired out at the county council’s regular meeting, which took place on Tuesday night. Continue reading “Clash over role of future Monroe County jail transition director, possible post-holiday resolution” →

Gas line leak outside Monroe County jail shut off before evacuation plan activated

Gas leak at Monroe County jail Sept. 20, 2023
Gas leak at Monroe County jail Sept. 20, 2023
Gas leak at Monroe County jail Sept. 20, 2023
Gas leak at Monroe County jail Sept. 20, 2023
Gas leak at Monroe County jail Sept. 20, 2023

On Wednesday, outside Monroe County’s jail, a gas line that was busted around 3:42 p.m. had by 7:12 p.m. been shut off. That’s according to a Monroe County sheriff’s office news release.

At least three Bloomington fire department trucks were on the scene at the jail late Wednesday afternoon as part of the emergency response to the leaking gas line outside the jail.

Fire trucks were staged in and around the north-south alley that cuts through the block at 7th Street and College Avenue where the jail is located.

The whooshing sound of leaking gas was audible from the end of the alley. The odor of natural gas was occasionally discernible, but not persistent.

According to a Monroe County sheriff’s office news release, the gas line was broken after an ASI Facilities Services worker removed a broken toilet from the jail. The toilet was set down outside in a way that struck the inlet valve for a gas line into the jail, according to the sheriff’s news release. Continue reading “Gas line leak outside Monroe County jail shut off before evacuation plan activated” →

Next steps taken for Thomson PUD as potential site of new Monroe County jail

The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.
The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.
The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.
Not a proposed specific site. The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.
Aug. 29, 2023 review of jail sites
From front to back: Julie Thomas, Jeff Cockerill, Angie Purdie, Mary Ellen Diekhoff (Aug. 29, 2023)
Monroe County councilors, from left, Kate Wiltz, and Jennifer Crossley (Aug. 29, 2023)
Across the corner of the table are Monroe County sheriff Ruben Marté and Monroe County commissioner Penny Githens (Aug. 29, 2023)
Overview of vicinity map for potential new jail site.
Inset for Locator map of Thomson PUD

The consensus was pretty clear among county officials who met on Tuesday at the county courthouse: They want to take steps towards making the Thomson PUD the site of the county’s new correctional facility.

The Thomson PUD is the county-owned property west of Rogers Street and south of Catalent.

Those next steps include doing a geotechnical analysis of the property, starting conversations with Bloomington’s planning department about zoning requirements, and talking to immediate neighbors.

Next steps also include getting an appraisal done on some land that the county does not own.

The land not yet owned by the county government is wedged between the Thomson PUD and Catalent along Strong Drive, which would be one of the access points to the new jail.

Tuesday’s gathering was a publicly noticed meeting of the county council and the county commissioners, but no formal votes were taken on a decision about the Thomson PUD property. Several other officials had been invited. Continue reading “Next steps taken for Thomson PUD as potential site of new Monroe County jail” →

Meeting on site selection for new Monroe County jail set for Aug. 29

Not a proposed specific site. The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.
The building footprint of the Hamilton County jail is superimposed on the map to give a rough idea of the size of a potential jail compared to the overall site.

On Tuesday, a big group of local government officials has been invited by Monroe County commissioners to a discussion about the future site of a new county jail.

The meeting, which will be convened in the Nat U. Hill Room of the county courthouse, is set to start at 5:30 p.m.

The meeting on the jail site location coincides with the second day of departmental budget hearings that are on the calendar for Bloomington’s city council.

Scheduled on Tuesday night for the city council, starting at 5:30 p.m., are Bloomington Transit, followed by the fire department, and the police department.

Bloomington police chief Mike Diekhoff, who will be presenting his department’s 2024 budget requests to the city council on Tuesday, has also been invited to the meeting about the jail site location.

Other invitees include: Ruben Marté (sheriff); Mary Ellen Diekhoff (circuit court presiding judge); Erika Oliphant (prosecutor); Jill Lees (IU police chief); Jimmie Durnil (Ellettsville town marshal); Paul Bucher (Indiana State Police district commander); John Hamilton (Bloomington mayor); Sue Sgambelluri (city council president); and the members of the Monroe County council. Continue reading “Meeting on site selection for new Monroe County jail set for Aug. 29” →

Update from sheriff’s office: Jail numbers stable

Monroe County chief deputy sheriff Phil Parker (June 14, 2023)
Moroe County commissioners Lee Jones (left) and Penny Githens. Commissioner Julie Thomas joined the meeting on the Zoom video conferencing platform (June 14, 2023)

After a contentious first three months of the year, relations between county commissioners and new sheriff Ruben Marté’s office have settled into a routine update from the chief deputy sheriff at county commissioner meetings.

At the start of Wednesday’s county commissioner meeting, chief deputy sheriff Phil Parker offered an update on the current status of the county jail facility.

Parker began this Wednesday’s update by highlighting the jail population, which currently stands at 192 inmates, as of June 13. Continue reading “Update from sheriff’s office: Jail numbers stable” →

Substance use awareness group gets a look inside Monroe County’s jail

On Friday, when a tour group of elected and appointed officials arrived at the Monroe County jail’s laundry room, two industrial-sized dryers were spinning, which made the area smell like freshly washed clothes.

Before and after photos of different locations in the Monroe County jail, provided by the county sheriff’s office.

Leading the tour was jail commander Kyle Gibbons, who said about the laundry, “This is the only part of the jail that smells normal.”

In the rest of the jail, the odor is a mix of bodily waste, fresh paint, and cleaning fluids.

The fresh paint and cleaning fluids are part of sheriff Ruben Marté’s effort to clean and sanitize the jail to rectify conditions that confronted him after he was sworn into office at the start of the year.

The tour was another chance for more decision makers to see first-hand the conditions that have been depicted in slide decks presented at several public meetings starting in late January.

On Friday afternoon, it was members of Monroe County’s substance use disorder awareness commission (SUDAC) who toured the jail. Continue reading “Substance use awareness group gets a look inside Monroe County’s jail” →

Monroe County jail notebook: Commissioners, sheriff looking to work together on mental health program

Monroe County chief deputy sheriff Phil Parker (April 26, 2023).
Monroe County commissioners from left: Lee Jones, Penny Githens, and Julie Thomas (April 26, 2023).

The Monroe County sheriff’s office and the county commissioners are hoping that Monroe County’s jail can be included in the expansion of a pilot program that started in five other Indiana counties last year.

The IRACS (Integrated Reentry and Correctional Support) program is designed to give one-on-one support to inmates with mental health and substance use disorders, as soon as they are incarcerated.  The goal is to divert them from the system into treatment. Continue reading “Monroe County jail notebook: Commissioners, sheriff looking to work together on mental health program” →

Monroe County sheriff sends update on efforts to clean, sanitize jail

Late Wednesday afternoon, Monroe County sheriff Ruben Marté released an update on efforts to clean up the jail facility.

The emailed update was sent to county councilors, county commissioners, members of the community justice response committee, and several other community members.

The update included a link to several before-after photos of: J Block, which is the jail’s new mental health dormitory; the intake room; and the sally port, which is where prisoners are taken into the jail.

The focus of current cleaning efforts is on D Block, according to Marté’s update. Continue reading “Monroe County sheriff sends update on efforts to clean, sanitize jail” →

New position OK’d for jail cleaning, Monroe County councilors talk making (versus keeping) the peace

Monroe County sheriff Ruben Marté (March 6, 2023).
President of the Monroe County Democratic Black Caucus, Nicole Bolden (March 6, 2023).
Monroe County councilor Jennifer Crossley at the March 14, 2023 council meeting.
Monroe County councilor Kate Wiltz at the March 14, 2023 council meeting.

A new position at Monroe County’s jail has been created to support new sheriff Ruben Marté’s effort to make the jail clean and sanitary, and to keep it that way.

At their regular Tuesday meeting, county councilors voted unanimously in favor of creating a new job called “jail facility coordinator.”  It will be paid on par with guards. It will report directly to the sheriff.

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the county council authorized an additional appropriation of $40,000 for supplies to clean and paint the jail. Continue reading “New position OK’d for jail cleaning, Monroe County councilors talk making (versus keeping) the peace” →

DLZ gets initial nod from Monroe County for new jail design, vote 2 weeks away

Monroe County facilities director Richard Crider addresses county commissioners on March 8, 2023.
Monroe County commissioners from left: Lee Jones, Penny Githens, and Julie Thomas.

The final decision has not been made, but DLZ is likely to be the firm that Monroe County uses to master plan and design a new jail facility.

At a Wednesday morning work session, Monroe County commissioners received a brief report from a committee that they created to review three responses to a request for qualifications (RFQ), to master plan and design  a new jail.

DLZ was the company recommended by the committee. The other two responses came from Elavatus and RQRAW.

Monroe County director of facilities Richard Crider delivered the committee’s recommendation to the commissioners. About the three companies who responded, Crider said, “They are all very capable and proficient in what they do. And I believe we all felt like any one of them could provide a facility that meets our needs.”

But it was DLZ that got the committee’s nod: “One firm stood out above the rest and that was DLZ.” Crider added, “DLZ was the unanimous decision of the committee.”

Joining Crider on the RFQ review committee were: David Gardner, ASI Facilities Services contractor; Lee Baker, county attorney; Kyle Gibbons, jail commander; Matt Demmings, assistant jail commander; and Angie Purdie, administrator for the commissioners.

The commissioners do not have a regular meeting scheduled for next week, on March 15. The vote on the choice of DLZ is set for two weeks from now, on March 22. Continue reading “DLZ gets initial nod from Monroe County for new jail design, vote 2 weeks away” →