Clark County in Ohio will spend approximately $100 million to design and build a new jail. The county recently received $4 million from the state to buy land and begin the design process. While the project is moving forward, the construction date has not yet been determined.
The county’s current jail – located in downtown Springfield alongside the city’s Police Division and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office – is significantly outdated and no longer meets contemporary needs or standards. The facility is too small for the jail population and does not comply with state standards.
While project details are forthcoming, the county has released that the facility would cover between 130,000 to 140,000 square feet of land. The structure will hold up to 454 beds and be built to accommodate future additions or expansions as needed. The county will also ensure the facility has dedicated space for inmate pods, training facilities and administrative office space.
In late August, Clark County commissioners finalized a purchase agreement for four parcels of land south of Springfield. The plot, consisting of a nearly 30-acre farm field, has been selected as the preferred location for the upcoming jail.
While voters recently disapproved a levy that would have funded a significant portion of the project, county commissioners remain determined to begin development on the project. The levy may be brought before voters again in the spring.
Photo by Harrison Keely, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, from Wikimedia Commons
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