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New $161 Million Jail Complex Could Be Located Near Molino, Cantonment Or Beulah
July 18, 2014
The Escambia County Commission is working to find a location to build a new jail, and so far properties in Cantonment, south of Molino and in Beulah have been discussed.
Locations discussed for a new correctional complex include an area at the Escambia County Road Prison in Cantonment, 100 acres located in the Beulah area near I-10 adjacent to the Perdido Landfill, and a nearly 200 acre parcel owned by the county in the Central Commerce Park on Highway 29 south of Molino.
The commission, at the request of District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry, will also send out a request for information on other possible locations.
Commissioners expressed a desire to move forward as quickly as possible for a replacement for the Central Booking and Detention Facility, which was destroyed in an explosion a few months ago.
For now, prisoners are be housed at facilities such as the Road Prison in Cantonment and facilities in other nearby counties — and that’s cost the county millions over time.
“I don’t want to sit around here for months and months and months and talk about this and keep saying that we are going to spend an extra three almost $5 million on temporary housing and let a lot of time go by. Because if I can save a year I’ve saved almost $5 million,” said Commissioner Wilson Robertson.
Constructing a temporary facility is estimated to cost up to $24 million, compared to $7.5 to $14 million to house prisoners in other counties.
Relocation of the destroyed building and the main jail into a correctional complex on one of the three sites or elsewhere is estimated to have a $161 million price tag. The county is still waiting to find out if flood insurance, property insurance and FEMA money will help pay for the new jail — it will all depend on the outcome of a current federal investigation into the cause of the explosion.
In the event FEMA pays up, the county will still be on the hook for 12.5 percent of the total cost plus any expansions past the pre-flood level.
The explosion claimed the lives of two people — including a McDavid man — and left 184 people injured.
Comments
38 Responses to “New $161 Million Jail Complex Could Be Located Near Molino, Cantonment Or Beulah”
Go right across the street and up the hill from the CBD . There is a park there currently that is rarely used. (In 6 years I have not seen anyone use the park). It’s higher in elevation and didn’t flood. Rebuild the park on the current CBD location.
The best location is 601 297-A Cantonment,FL 32533. Facility already exist there. And inmates are less likely to escape from that location. Combining the two jails together would improve the overall property and Camp 5 could receive a full renovation. Repair and renovation is most needed. I agree with first proposal.Please relocate to 601 297-A Cantonment,FL 32533. And besides there are children daycare nurseries less than a mile away from the Commerce Park .Beulah would be to close to stateline and would possibly assist inmates to escape easier. County Commissioners please rebuild at 601 297-A Cantonment,FL 32533. It makes no sense in wasting tax payer dollars on other vacant properties.
The jail house should stay in the city! Why bring it to the backwoods where inmates can flee and get away alot easier than in the city. It’s just a really bad idea to bring it where no one wants it. I don’t like the idea of it coming to beulah. Just leave it downtown!
I think alot of us are missing the point here…. Who runs the jail? Why did the old jail blow up? Why was there a 3 day warning (inmates and guards complaining and going home early), but yet nothing was done about it? Everything is not as it seems…. watch , listen and learn. Ask questions…
it is true that Arizona has a jail system and the inmates hate to go there. it is just a thought…as for visitation, over in Gulf County, Fl the visits are done outside and there is a six foot fence between the visitor and the inmate. no tables, chairs, a/c…and that jail has no a/c or heat so it is hot hot hot in the summer and freezing in the winter…I like the idea of the Arizona jail because the inmates grow their own food…build their own living space…and even though they should be treated humanely..i am not in favor of making them have a lot of the comforts of home. what lesson does that teach?
The Road Prison compound has 2 -8″ gas mains that cut the compound in half. The rest qualifies as swamp ground.
Not a good option.
Put it by the landfill and fast track the I-10 connector for easy transport to and from.
LET US ALL THINK like adults.
The road camp area / land is already a confinement facility. Improvements of the facility confinement fence would be less costly than an all new fence for a facility located else where. Construction of a new jail / facility on the same property will also be less costly because most of the utility facilities are already there and would only need up-grading compared to the cost of a completely new system.
The question of transporting prisoners to and from court. The system is already in place for VIDIO conferencing. This is also safer for everyone, the prisoners never need to be in public, can you say safety? Cost for this system will be less than the constant upgrading old buildings will less than ideal results.
So, all and all I say build a new, safer, state of the art jail / intake facility at the Road Camp facility. There is a perfect road to Pine Forest & 9-Mile that is mostly NEW and not subject to flooding for those that worry about such things.
ALSO, a better design (new) will help with the cost of segregating the dangerous prisoners, keeping track of prisoners movements as well as the cost of feeding. New facility, safer facility, more cost effective design and centralized resulting in overall savings in the long run.
So, I say the new JAIL should be in Cantonment, at the Road Camp location.
CottageHill,Molino,some of Cantonment was easy living before the scums and people that did not make their children mind started moving in. This was before the 90’s. Since the DCF started letting kids do as they please not have to work or mind there parents it has gotten worse. In some cases they have helped some kids but a blank slate only opened more rebellion. The kids are left along for too long to fend for themselves and let others control what they do or say. When people become responsible for their actions and do the right thing they will keep the area safe. Parents get control of your kids teach them right from wrong and keep a closer eye on them. Maybe you might help a few from filling up the jail cells.And yes keep the jail downtown so the bail bonds and lawyers won’t have to move
I thought living in the “country” would be peaceful but after repeatedly reading about burglars breaking into homes, holding people in their living rooms, the Village druggies, the Cottage Hill issues, lotto store owners murdered…..the countryside doesn’t sound so peaceful. Like it or not, we the public have the responsibility to house prisoners humanely and sounds like plenty of them are good old country boys and girls.
They are prisoneers. They broke they law. What makes them so special that they need new and better liviing conditions. Just get more razor wire, some peanut butter and jelly. If there is no electricor water so what? Obey the law and they can have as much electric and water as they want. Keep the jail/prison in town thats where most of them broke the law. People live out of town for the peace, quiet and security lets keep it that way. Adopt some of Arizonas procdedures so they will remember what it is like in jail. Keep the jail out of Cantonment, Buelah and anywhere else away from town.
Everett you are so right,I just dont except ECAT must be involved.let the visitors find their OWN transportation.we are paying for the prisoners upkeep,isnt that enough?
The other was from a road crew in Pensacola as I said the road prison has not had anyone escape from the compound in over 6 years. And of course no one wants a jail close to their house but the county has to do something the area where the jails are now is not going to just stop flooding.
Please please I do not want a jail/prison across the street from my property they need to be kept downtown
>>>My bad it was May of this year. Here is the link to the story.
http://www.northescambia.com/2014/05/2escaped-prisoner-on-the-run-near-jacks-branch-road
This man fled from a work site along the highway. He did not escape from inside the road camp compound.
My bad it was May of this year. Here is the link to the story.
http://www.northescambia.com/2014/05/2escaped-prisoner-on-the-run-near-jacks-branch-road
I live 8 miles from the road camp they had an escape in feb. of this year and another in dec. of last year both were caught within hours why the media didn’t pick up on this I have no clue.
They do not book inmates at he main jail they book them at the intake transporting them from there in doj vans to the jail. The LEOs would not need to transport them to the jail or court the doj vans do that now except in special situations. The extra distance would definitely cost more. The council is still considering other locations.
@stumpknocker
I thought of the same location. However it flooded during April rain storm. The Ruby Tuesday restaurant at the location is still closed due to the rains.
Kane you must not be from around here an inmate has not escaped from the road prison compound in over 6 years the only escapes have been from road crews where there are no locked doors
I wonder if the old soccer complex at hwy 29 and W st is zoned for something like this,it’s kinda in the middle and seems like it would be better suited for all involved.
The CBD facility is not repairable. The Main Jail facility is in need of a minimum $15+ million dollar upgrade and these upgrades dont address the flooding issues. There is a severe need to replace aging infrastructure of plumbing, door security, moisture/humidity control, security deficiencies (as noted by the DOJ). Additionally, this does not address the need for improvements to the laundry and kitchen in the event the facility is increased to accept additional inmates.
Unlike the County Road Prison whose visitation is a contact face-to-face visit, Inmate visitation for inmates at the Main Jail is a video visitation. No visitors are allowed access to jail facility. Video visitation is just one more way to eliminate contraband from being introduced into the facility.
The selection site process is going to be a NIMBY problem — Not In My Back Yard. Fact is the facility is in dire need of replacement.
I will say that based on the amount of prisoners that must be bussed to the courthouse each, the distance from the jail to the courthouse will be an issue that could add significant transport cost each year. It will also impede the ability of law enforcement – both city police and county personnel – from making quick trips to book a prisoner.
All three suggested locations will be a burden for law enforcement bookings of new arrestee’s and the the transporting to the courthouse.
The Road Camp offers an advantage if the BCC is seeking to combine staffing as there could easily be a reduction in higher ranking staff charged with overseeing the facilities operations.
I think the next best location is the Hwy 29/95a Commerce Park location. Those business currently within the park who voice a NIMBY concern because of the inmates should visit the jail and prison facilities in Santa Rosa County. They would quickly see that jails/prison do not have an adverse effect on surrounding businesses.
Regardless of how people may feel, it is necessary that a new facility is built. Spending money to house inmates in neighboring counties is a continual waste of money. I wouldnt be opposed to using LOST money to acquire property closer to the downtown area in order to build a new facility.
I like the idea of demolish the old jail and built there. That location is surrounded by county facilities and programs. Keep it all in one place. High rise that is capable of having new floors added as expansion is needed. Helo pad on the roof. Compact high rise rather than a sprawling estate!
Is the jail so bad that it could not be repaired? Seems costs would be far less if the “entire” building is not damaged.
A jail further away from the court house makes little sense to me. Travel time.
Politicians who want to “hurry up” and do something makes me wonder what they are up to. Not implying they are up to no good. Just makes me go hhmm?
Why can’t they build the jail directly south of where it sits now? There is an old softball field and a small retention pond on the site. The jail currently uses up about 5 acres and across the street they would have a minimum 10+ acres to construct a new facility IMMEDIATELY because it is currently owned by the county. Why would we place the jail in a location so far from the courthouse and other critical law enforcement buildings?
Also, it would add cost to transporting the inmates to their scheduled hearings and take the LEO’s off of the street that much longer for booking. All PPD officers as well as an overwhelming number of the ECSO is assigned south of I10, every time they would need to transport an inmate to the jail it would greatly increase the time that LEO is off the street, don’t we have a shortage of LEO’s already? So now we are going to force the officer to issue a higher number of “notices to appear” which leaves the offender on the street or spend a greater amount of time transporting the offender to the inconveniently located jail. One may say “well that area may flood again,” SIMPLE, factor that into the elevation of the brand new facility. Come on Commissioners use a little COMMON SENSE.
Put em in tents in a corner of the landfill ? Really ? No, put John in a tent in a corner of the landfill. Before peole wishi something negative on someone they ought to try it first, just to make sure it’s okay.
Will the pawn shops and bail bonds business follow them to the North End?
Im not sure about this, but as I understand, ECAT goes all the way to Century-so that isnt going to be a problem. I don’t think it runs that far on the weekends though. Why not build the jail in Century?
These locations all have good and bad points.ECATdoes not run to any of these locations so visitation would definitely be affected. As far as the road camp being “professionally ran” you must not live very close because there are inmates escaping from there all the time. The traffic for Beulah is horrible but just think they might 4 lane for a new jail. The jail being adjacent to the land fill or built on top of the road prison right across the road from the paper mills “filtration ponds” are both awful ideas. We already pay enough in taxes for the jails can you imagine all the new health issues that inmates could develop due to the proximity of these two major sources of pollution. The hwy.29 commerce center seems like the most logical choice the county could simply add an extra bus route there are plenty of people on this end of the county that could actually benefit from an ECAT route coming this way. While that location is still close to the paper mill it is not right next to the “filtration ponds”.
I think using the area in Cantonment that already has the road prison is probably the best bet. The inmates are already here, folks, and they are being kept (very professionally, I might add) in a minimum security setting. Some of these folks need bars and concrete – not a boot camp setting. If the county is smart, they can consolidate road crew operations with the main jail and the staff will have more options on shifts, positions, etc. Generally, when you hear NOTHING about a prison in the community, such as our road camp, it means it’s being fairly well run and the inmates are secured within. The Perdido Landfill has some criminal justice programs and other law enforcement activities that happen adjacent to the landfill. Unless the proposed area for the jail is a good distance from these activities, I don’t think building the jail out in Buelah is a good idea.
NOT in Beulah. There is already so much more traffic due to Navy Federal and will continue to get worse with the expansions they are adding. That would just be adding to a problem that’s already in place.
The commerce park on Hwy 29 is zoned for a jail and reportedly flooding would not be an issue. Not sure if ECAT goes that far so transportation for visitors might be an issue. Escambia Co needs to get this done and stop millions of dollars from going somewhere else.
Tents sound like a good idea to me, and but them in a corner of the perdido landfill.
Since there is already a prison there, & the area is surely in no danger of gentrification (ever) I say Cantonment, bring it.
If they put it in Cantonment they should be aware that they will have to fix the flooding issue on Hwy. 29 there in Cantonment or they won’t be able to get to or from the Commerce Park area when it rains heavily unless they use 95A, which may be over run with backed up traffic. Just a thought.
Why take the time and money to transport criminals farther away from the courthouse? People who live in rural areas do so because they want to get away from that!
We do not want the Jail at the Central Commerce Park on hwy 29.
Place it at the landfill. Think of the next election and your incumbency.
So why not get on the ball excavating the old jail and rebuild in the same place..surely they aren’t just going to leave the old building standing as an eye sore!?!?!
The Sheriff in Arizona houses prisoners and detainees in tents and plays Linda Ronstadt music to them daily. He feeds them on $2 a day, mostly sandwiches. Why can’t this county do this?