Sheriff not behind plan for remote jail site

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By JEAN ORTIZ / Lincoln Journal Star

Not every Lancaster County official is behind plans for a new jail at Southwest 40th and West O streets.

“I don’t like it,” Sheriff Terry Wagner said.

His concern is not over whether the county needs a new jail. The complex at 10th and J streets has been out of compliance with state standards because of overcrowding for five years and needs more space. That’s not debatable, he said.

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Terry Wagner

Terry Wagner

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What worries him is what the remote jail site will mean for his department and a budget already stressed by rising gas prices.

Frustrating as well is that consultants who a year ago compiled a pre-architectural report used by county commissioners to decide to build at a remote site did not seek input from him or Lincoln Police Chief Tom Casady, he said.

Transportation issues were given careful consideration, not only in the decision to build at a new site but as the board evaluated 19 sites before settling on the West O location, said Commissioner Deb Schorr, who chaired the County Board at the time when the report was coming together.

Consultants gathered feedback from commissioners, Corrections Department staff members and a steering committee composed of people with backgrounds in corrections or criminal justice, according to the report’s acknowledgements.

The extra costs already are being incurred in the form of staff time and the transportation expenses of moving inmates to other counties because of overcrowding here, she said.

With the new jail, she expects to see a shift in budget line items from the Corrections Department to the Sheriff’s Department, and it’s something commissioners have to be ready for come budget time.

“In my mind it was somewhat of a trade-off,” she said.

Casady, meanwhile, is eager to see how the new jail is designed. Although the new site is farther from where most arrests are made in the city, that can be offset by other conveniences, he said.

Access for officers is essential, and it’s one area in which the current jail comes up short, he said.

“It’s a little bit tedious,” he said in describing the lack of parking and the need to use an elevator upon entrance.

Moving forward, he said he’d like to see his department’s needs attended to, which can happen with or without his input, he said. He guesses his concerns would be known by the sheriff or anyone in the business of designing jails.

“I think that any good jail design firm knows that access and the efficiency of the intake center is important,” he said.

Wagner does have a seat at the table in the next big decision. He is among county officials and community members selected by the County Board to review proposals from design firms and to offer a recommendation.

Schorr, meanwhile, is confident in the diversity of backgrounds represented on the committee, which includes some members who initially helped with the pre-architectural report.

“We worked very hard to come to consensus with the committee,” she said.

Reach Jean Ortiz at 473-7107 or jortiz@journalstar.com.