$96,000,000 is too much

The estimated cost of $96,000,000 is substantially higher than other, bigger recently opened jails Iowa, Nebraska, and Indiana. In fact, the estimated cost has already increased by 20 percent since the concept first appeared in 2024, and public construction projects often exceed their initial budgets.

The Process Has Been Opaque

Despite two years of design work, the public has had very little insight into how the county arrived at the current proposal. The county convened a committee that produced zero recommendations. How was input from mental health providers, defense attorneys, formerly incarcerated people and their families incorporated? Was it incorporated? Even the location has been shrouded in secrecy: only after a land purchase was approved, with zero information publicly available in advance, did leaders admit it was for the proposed jail.

$96,000,000 is too much

The estimated cost of $96,000,000 is substantially higher than other, bigger recently opened jails Iowa, Nebraska, and Indiana. In fact, the estimated cost has already increased by 20 percent since the concept first appeared in 2024, and public construction projects often exceed their initial budgets.

$96,000,000 is too much

The estimated cost of $96,000,000 is substantially higher than other, bigger recently opened jails Iowa, Nebraska, and Indiana. In fact, the estimated cost has already increased by 20 percent since the concept first appeared in 2024, and public construction projects often exceed their initial budgets.