County breaks ground at jail$100 million expansion under way in North Charleston By Tenisha Waldo (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Friday, May 2, 2008
Construction on one of the most expensive government building projects in the Lowcountry's history kicked off Thursday. Charleston County Council members, representatives from area policing agencies and several elected officials converged at the county's Detention Center in North Charleston where a more than $100 million jail expansion project is under way. Jailers have grappled with overcrowding at the facility for years, and Council Chairman Tim Scott said during the groundbreaking that he is glad the correctional officers will see relief soon. "Our objective is really to create an environment that is as safe as possible for the individuals that have to work in this facility," Scott said. "It's often times a thankless job." The county jail on Leeds Avenue was built in 1966 to hold about 661 inmates, but last year it held more than twice that on average, including work-release inmates. The new facility will be 323,000 square feet, adding about 20 dormitory-style housing units and 1,344 beds. Sheriff Al Cannon thanked Council for recognizing the need for additional bed space. Council members could have picked a cheaper alternative that would have added only about 600 more beds, he said. "They bit the bullet and stepped forward with the greater cost project," Cannon said. "I think that was a responsible act on their part in anticipating the needs of the county." The county is paying for the new site with recently borrowed money and future borrowing, with plans to pay off the loans over 20 years. Columbia-based M.B. Kahn Construction is handling the design and building of the project. The new facility's housing unit should be complete by February 2010. The rest of the renovations would be done by that August. Reach Tenisha Waldo at 937-5744 or twaldo@postand courier.com. |
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Comments
This article has 20 comment(s)
Posted by Mayor on May 2, 2008 at 6:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
With the inmates already in jail, isn't the new addition already full?
Posted by tripsa on May 2, 2008 at 7:38 a.m. (Suggest removal)
well, they better build it bigger with the surge in illegal imigrants...
Posted by Early on May 2, 2008 at 7:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I would like cell 22b please. I want Showtime too. And make sure you have the food I like and weight room, rec room and basketball court also!
Have you heard of the sheriff in Texas that has his prisoner sleep in tents? No rec equipment, no cable TV, none of that crap and guess what, crime went down in his area. It still exist today!
Posted by number1volsfan1 on May 2, 2008 at 8:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Early, the sheriff you are referring to is Joe Arpaio, the sheriff of Maricopa County Arizona (Phoenix). I am a supporter of his. Wouldn't go over too well here though, too many bleeding hearts.
Posted by ColdBeer on May 2, 2008 at 8:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)
They could probably cut the cost of building this jail in half just by simply doing the following:
Do not put any electrical outlets in the cells.
Do not build a recreation room.
Do not build a weight lifting room.
Do not build an exercise yard.
Do not build a library.
Do not build a cafeteria.
Do not install any windows in the cells.
Do not build any vocational training areas.
Do not build any educational learning areas.
Do not install telephones for inmate access.
Do not build a kitchen.
Do not build a visiting room.
Build 8'X10' reinforced concrete cells with a bunk, sink, toilet and one slot in the door for TV dinners to be passed through.
Think of how many extra cells could be placed in the same square footage if they got rid of all of the free amenities that prisoners get. Think of the saving from the fewer number of staff that would have to be hired to run the place. Think of the drop in crime that occurs inside the jail.
Think of the deterrent factor that might... just might... prevent some dummy from committing his next crime.
Posted by Early on May 2, 2008 at 8:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
My bad, I thought it was Texas but Arizona also cam into my mind. I don't know about the bleeding hearts here. We've never had an opportunity to see though I wish we would!
Right now, it's a better life than on the street for a lot of folks so they have no problem in committing crimes, and the innocent are the target!
Posted by number1volsfan1 on May 2, 2008 at 9:01 a.m. (Suggest removal)
If a candidate would run for sheriff on the tent and pink boxer shorts platform, he would have my support, hell I would actively campaign for him!
Posted by Edwin435 on May 2, 2008 at 9:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This jail is sorely needed. People complain that the inmates get too many privileges and for the most part they are right but these things that you all are complaining about can and is used as a control tool to maintain some form of order. If you take away everything there will be no way to insure order thus making things much more dangerous for those that work there. Also, one thing I want all of you to remember. This jail is for those who have not been found guilty. These are pre-sentenced inmates. Does that mean we need to coddle them? No! I does mean however that you cant punish them for things that they have NOT been convicted of yet. All it takes is a stupid judgment call on your part and you could be there too. I have seen that and know it for a fact! Would you want to be treated like that? Just a thought ....
Posted by outrage on May 2, 2008 at 9:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Sheriff Joe Arpaio (in Arizona) is doing it RIGHT!! He has jail meals down to 40 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them. He stopped smoking and porno magazines in the jails. Took away their weights. Cut off all but "G" movies. He started chain gangs so the inmates could do free work on county and city projects. Then he started chain gangs for women so he wouldn't get sued for discrimination.
He took away cable TV until he found out there was a federal court order that required cable TV for jails. So he hooked up the cable TV again but only let in the Disney channel and the weather channel. When asked why the weather channel he replied, so they will know how hot it's gonna be while they are working on my chain gangs.
He cut off coffee since it has zero nutritional value. When the inmates complained, he told them.....this is a good one......"This isn't the Ritz/Carlton. If you don't like it, don't come back."
He bought Newt Gingrich's lecture series on videotape that he pipes into the jails. When asked by a reporter if he had any lecture series by a Democrat, he replied that a democratic lecture series might explain why a lot of the inmates were in his jails in the first place. You have to love this guy!!
More on the AZ Sheriff:
With temperatures being even hotter than usual in Phoenix (116 degrees just set a new record), the Associated Press reports:
About 2,000 inmates living in a barbed-wire-surrounded tent encampment at the Maricopa County Jail have been given permission to strip down to
their government-issued pink boxer shorts. On Wednesday, hundreds of men wearing boxers were either curled up on their bunk beds or chatted in the tents, which reached 138 degrees inside the week before. Many were also swathed in wet, pink towels as sweat collected on their chests and dripped down to their pink socks. "It feels like we are in a furnace," said James Zanzot, an inmate who has lived in the tents for 1 1/2 years. "It's inhumane."
Joe Arpaio, the tough-guy sheriff who created the tent city and long ago started making his prisoners wear pink, and eat bologna sandwiches, is
not one bit sympathetic He said Wednesday that he told all of the inmates: "It's 120 degrees in Iraq and our soldiers are living in tents too, and
they have to wear full battle gear, but they didn't commit any crimes... so shut your damned mouths."
Posted by number1volsfan1 on May 2, 2008 at 9:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I was subjected to those conditions in Iraq (just for serving my country and not for being "suspected" of committing any crime).
Posted by outrage on May 2, 2008 at 9:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!
Maricopa County was spending approx $18 million dollars a year on stray animals, like cats and dogs. Sheriff Joe Arpaio offered to take the department over, the County Supervisors said okay.
The animal shelters are now all staffed & operated by prisoners. They feed and care for the strays. Every animal in his care is taken out & walked twice daily. He now has prisoners who are experts in animal nutrition & behavior. They give great classes for anyone who'd like to adopt an animal. He has literally taken stray dogs off the street, given them to the care of prisoners, & had them place in dog shows.
The best part? His budget for the entire department is now under $3 million.
Teresa & I adopted a Weimaraner from a Maricopa County shelter two years ago. He was neutered, & current on all shots, in great health, & even had a microchip inserted the day we got him. Cost us $78.
The prisoners get the benefit of about $0.28 an hour for working, but most would work for free, just to be out of their cells for the day. Most of his budget is for utilities, building maintenance, etc. He pays the prisoners out of the fees collected for adopted animals.
I have long wondered when the rest of the country would take a look at the way he runs the jail system, & copy some of his ideas. He has a huge farm, donated to the county years ago, where inmates can work. They grow most of their own fresh vegetables & food, doing all the work & harvesting by hand. He has a pretty good sized hog farm, which provides meat & fertilizer. It fertilizes the Christmas tree nursery, where prisoners work. You can buy a living Christmas tree for $6 - $8 for the Holidays, & plant it later. We have six trees in our yard from the Prison.
Yup, he was re-elected last year with 83% of the vote.
Now, he's in trouble with the ACLU again. He painted all his buses & vehicles with a mural, that has a special hot-line phone number painted on it, where you can call & report suspected illegal aliens. Immigrations & Customs Enforcement wasn't doing enough in his eyes, so he had 40 deputies trained specifically for enforcing immigration laws, started up his hotline, & bought 4 new buses, just for hauling folks back to the border. He's kind of a "Git-R Dun" kind of Sheriff!
Posted by greyrider on May 2, 2008 at 9:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Posted by outrage on May 2, 2008 at 9:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!
Hey Columbia! Listen up!
Yup, he was re-elected last year with 83% of the vote.
Hello!
Posted by LowcountryMoose on May 2, 2008 at 9:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
$100 million!?!?!?!
I guess the criminal scourge get to the steal our cake and eat it too.
Posted by Thomas1776 on May 2, 2008 at 10:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The expansion is already to small before the first brick is laid.
Make more room for the politicians and all the illegals mexicans.
South Carolina voters have had enough of the tyrants and this out of control mexican problem. The pot is boiling over.
Posted by Girleygirl on May 2, 2008 at 12:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I like this sherriff....thanks for all of the info about him!
Posted by wpc3iop on May 2, 2008 at 12:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I like the barbed wire and tent idea for Charleston...It would cost a lot less than $100 million!
Posted by Edwin435 on May 2, 2008 at 12:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The tent idea sounds feasible but we have to ask these questions.... Where would you put it? What classification of inmate would be there? Which community would allow that to be in their back yard? How much money would you be able to save but have to use to defend against all the crappy law suits that the inmate will bring? Most of y'all are missing the fact that the tent city is only 1 of his 3 jails. I think the other 2 are just like the one we have here. The population is far greater than we have here so is the number of inmates. You never hear about those figures. One last thing that we might want to look at...what are the employees feelings that work under him and what are their working conditions like? Before you say " well they took the job so they get what the asked for" these people go into work everyday and protect us from those people. Lets include them to get the complete picture. Thanks for listening...
Posted by outrage on May 2, 2008 at 1:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I was talking more about his other programs, not tent city. He has to many programs to list.
* Hog farm
* Christmas tree farm
* Male, female, and juvenile chain gangs,etc.
Just letting you see how it is done without any Liberals involved!
Posted by abitskeptical on May 2, 2008 at 3:17 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ColdBeer--I keep saying...do some research into the prison industry (in general). There also is Prison Industries..but that's another issue.
You are functioning under the idea that the main function of the prison system in this country is to house criminals. This of course used to be the main function of a prison system.
They really are not interested in decreasing costs. They need to have the telephones in there because that is one of the biggest money makers.(Google prison phone systems). This isn't about keeping the jail staff safe either. This is a money making operation, under the guise housing criminals.
Posted by geekguy2008 on May 2, 2008 at 6:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If we build it, they will come.