County May Take Another Look at Building New Jail at Existing Site

April 25, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

Another look!

Based somewhat on public reaction during a question-and-answer period at the last jail committee meeting on April 7, the county commission may now be prepared to embrace the concept of building a new jail at the current location on the public square if the price is right. If the cost proves too much, the county may look elsewhere.

During Thursday night’s county commission workshop, Jail Committee Chairman Larry Green said he will ask the full county commission Monday night, April 28 to vote up or down on his proposal of having the architect and construction company that the county has been engaged with in previous discussions to come up with a new plan for building only a jail and sheriff’s department complex up to three levels on the existing site and to remodel the jail annex. As a three-story facility, Commissioner Green said the first floor could be for kitchen and laundry facilities, conference rooms, etc. with the sheriff’s department administration headquartered on the second floor and the third floor for inmate housing. Prisoners would remain housed in the current jail annex while new construction is underway on the east end of the facility near the sally port. After the new jail is completed, work could begin on remodeling the jail annex to bring it up to codes and TCI standards for additional inmate housing. All this, according to Green could possibly be done on property the county already owns with no additional land purchase. How many beds under this plan is still an open question.

Commissioner Green said Treanor Architects and Bell Construction would develop the plan at no cost to the county. Thus far in this process the county has not contracted to pay any architect or construction company. When time comes to build a new jail, the county would have to seek bids for construction.

This renewed effort, Commissioner Green explained would be an attempt to satisfy public concerns about building a jail at another location and the costs while trying to meet standards for state jail certification by the Tennessee Corrections Institute.

“After the last jail meeting, I contacted the architect and the contractor and what I have asked them to do is take a look at our current jail and see if there is anything we can do to bring it up to TCI standards and how many beds we can get out of it and what the cost is,” said Commissioner Green

“The idea is to look at the piece of property we own right beside the jail (east side),” Green continued. “Once you know how many beds we can get out of the current jail (jail annex) then we may be able to cut down on the number of new beds next door. We would still have to build some new things like a new kitchen. You’ll need a conference room to educate the prisoners, have ministers come in and have church services, still behind locked doors. Ministers could come in and talk to them. You could have classes for prisoners and things like that. We would probably still wind up with a three-story jail with all this stuff on the bottom floor, the sheriff’s department administration on the second floor and inmates on the third floor. They could still build in the recreation room and everything we need for it,” said Green.

“They (Treanor and Bell) are going to come up and meet with Sheriff Ray, County Mayor Adcock and myself on May 6. We will go through the jail, and they will go back and come up with hard numbers on exactly what it would cost us downtown,” explained Commissioner Green. “I also talked to (former TCI Deputy Director) Bob Bass and he said TCI would look at that plan to see if it meets their standards and gets us up to the number of beds they feel like we need. What I am looking for, Green said is a minimum number of beds we can build and still satisfy what TCI wants and expandability of what we can do downtown. They (Treanor and Bell) said they could have those numbers back to us probably by the end of May or the first of June to give us exactly what the downtown location would cost, what it would entail, and what we could do there. We won’t have exact costs until we bid it out, but this would give us a good idea of what it would cost. If the numbers come in and we say we are going to do something downtown the next step is to enter into a contract with the architect and at that point you have moved forward with the plan of action we are under with TCI to stay certified. Right now, all we are doing is gathering information. When we get those numbers, we (county commission) could make a decision if we want to stay downtown or go someplace else. At least we can say (to the public) that we have fully investigated the downtown location,” said Green.

Commissioner Sabrina Farler asked if possibly purchasing the half acre lot next to the jail (east side) might be an option for keeping the facility on one level.

“Is that (Green’s proposal) with the option of possibly purchasing the piece of land (next to the jail),” asked Farler.

“That would be buying no land. It’s just based on where we are at now,” replied Green.

“Can we at least have a discussion of how the plan would change if we could purchase that additional half acre lot, a plan B. We need to explore that idea,” said Commissioner Farler.

“If they do a remodel (jail annex) do we have to completely close the jail and ship everybody out until the project is done,” asked Commissioner Tony Luna.

“No what we would do is build the new part with that number of beds knowing that we will pick these other beds up when we remodel the old part (jail annex),” explained Commissioner Green. “We would finish the new part and move prisoners into that and go back and remodel what we have inside (jail annex). If we do anything in the annex portion, we have to build the whole building up to building codes. We have no idea how many beds we could get out of the old part (jail annex). It depends on what we have to do to bring it up to TCI standards,” Green explained.

At the new jail, Green said prisoners could be monitored by cameras from both locations (new jail and jail annex).

“Before (previous plan) we were looking at building a new jail, tearing down the old jail and building courtrooms there. It was four stories to get to 190 beds and a judicial center. This time it’s a jail only. We are not looking to tear it down but to reuse it with bed space maybe for lower classification people and trustees. But it (jail annex) has to be redone anyway because it doesn’t meet TCI standards. The only reason we are keeping it (jail annex) open is because we are under a plan of action with TCI. We still have to rework it inside even after we move people out of it into the new jail,” added Green.

In the meantime, if this plan moves forward with construction underway, some inmates will apparently still have to be sent to jails in other counties to ensure that the current certifiable jail capacity here doesn’t exceed 52 male inmates until the project is completed.

“Given what happened at the public question and answer session about a jail (jail committee meeting on April 7) we have to go down this road (exploring new plan at current site),” said Commissioner Tom Chandler, who has returned to the commission after a recent illness. “We did a version of this before (previous plan) but I think taking this path will give us a clearer picture of what can be done on the current site. It has to be done. There is a piece of the public that is determined that this thing can be built on the current site. We have to either show them that it can or can’t and the cost. In my view there is no moving forward until we answer that question because the public is not going to agree to move forward until we answer that question,” said Commissioner Chandler.

To move forward with Commissioner Green’s proposal, the county commission will need to adopt it with at least eight votes in favor at the Monday night meeting, April 28.

“Are you (county commission) willing to go this route? I don’t see any point in doing this if the commission is not willing to take a look at it,” said Commissioner Green.

“Will it keep us under a plan of action with TCI,” asked Commissioner Luna.

“No. Bob (Bass) said the only thing you are doing with this (new plan) is you are adding to your discussion. He said the only thing that will keep you under a plan of action is to actually move forward with something. We are still in the discussion phase and haven’t moved forward. He said we (TCI) need to know something by October to make their presentation (recommendation) to TCI (for continued jail certification under a plan of action),” said Green

“If we decide this is not going to work, we can purchase property,” said Green “We have two good pieces of property we have looked at (Smith Road and Robinson Road). We could move forward by purchasing a piece of property. There is any number of things we can do but I think we have to get this (downtown option) settled first,” said Commissioner Green.

“So, by mid-June we will know” asked Commissioner Luna.

“Yes” replied Commissioner Green.

Commissioner Greg Matthews argued that core drilling needs to be done on the existing site to determine suitability before any plan moves forward.

“If we are going to try to make a decision on this information (new building plan) we are going to need to have this information (core drilling) also,” said Commissioner Matthews.

Although County Mayor Matt Adcock would like a decision from the county commission on a jail project and adoption of the new budget and tax rate for 2025-26 by June 30, Green said “Under state law we can wait as late as August 31 to set a tax rate and pass a budget,” Green said.

The monthly meeting of the county commission will be Monday, April 28 at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the county complex.

April 24, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The county solid waste department would take on more spending under proposals presented to the county budget committee Tuesday night.

Public Works Director Brian Reed addressed the committee in person and in writing asking for pay raises for staff including himself; adding employees in some cases, repairs, maintenance and equipment, installing internet service and cameras at convenience center locations that don’t already have them, etc.

Director Reed told WJLE Thursday night that the budget numbers originally used in this story were from a proposed 2025-26 solid waste budget that has now been revised and updated.

Here is what WJLE first reported:  The total proposed budget in solid waste expenditures for 2025-26 is $3,377,096, up by $650,706 from $2,726,390 budgeted in 2024-25. However projected revenues in the proposed solid waste budget for 2025-26 are up by $532,695 compared to 2024-25 going from $2,666,545 to $3,199,240.

Director Reed explained that the revised numbers are as follows: Proposed revenues for 2025-26 are $2,967,107, up by $300,562 from 2024-25, and that the proposed expenditures are now at $2,947,422, an increase of $221,032 from 2024-25.

The solid waste budget receives no local property tax dollars but derives its funds from payment in lieu of taxes, local option sales tax, hotel/motel tax, bank excise tax, wholesale beer tax revenue and other sources.

In his lengthy proposal to the budget committee, Director Reed stressed several issues including base pay scales for employees, convenience center employees, internet services and convenience centers, scale house operator and software, repairs and maintenance, and other equipment and construction at convenience centers.

“I am writing to help explain my budget request increases as follows,” said Director Reed.

*Pay requests for the Director, CDL Truck Drivers, Laborer, Convenience Center Employees:

“Concerning the pay scale for our employees, initially I would like to address the driver pay. Currently, our CDL drivers’ starting pay is $20 per hour thanks to a $5 per hour raise that was approved in the last budget. However, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the median and mean hourly wage for truck drivers in Waste Management is $26.92 per hour and $26.87 per hour respectively. I would like to ask for a $2 per hour raise for the drivers bringing the base pay rate to $22 per hour. Next, I would like to change the base pay of the laborer position from $14 per hour to $15 per hour. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the median and mean hourly wage for laborers in Waste Management is $18.39 per hour and $19.23 per hour respectively. This will put both positions at what the current average rate is at around year 9-10 of employment. I would also like to ask for a 0.25 cent per hour raise for the convenience center employees who are currently at $12 per hour and have been since approximately 2022 according to the employees that have been in the positions long enough to remember. I have also asked for an annual raise for myself of $2,950 which is slightly over 5%”

Under the request, the Director’s salary would go from $58,750 to $61,700.

*Adding an Attendant at Snow Hill and Village Market Convenience Center Locations on Saturdays, Seeking Grant to Convert Temperance Hall Convenience Center from Unmanned to Manned:

“We have a few convenience centers that see a tremendous amount of traffic especially on Saturdays. I would like to request approval to add a site attendant to help at our Snow Hill and Village Market locations on Saturdays. Due to the volume of traffic that comes into these sites, it makes keeping an eye on everything that is going on difficult for one person. This leads to people dumping things that we are not allowed to take and also has led to people scavenging through containers in some cases, and in one case a person was attempting to take gravel from the site. Additionally, I would like to apply for a grant to convert Temperance Hall to a convenience center that is manned instead of an unmanned site. Having the site manned would discourage out of county materials and restricted items from being dumped on us as well as prevent scavenging of materials. Since the building for Temperance Hall would be purchased through a grant we would have to wait until the grant work is completed before manning the site and would not have the cost of manning for the full fiscal year”.

*Installing Internet Service and Cameras at Convenience Sites that do not already have them:

“I would like to ask that we install internet services at all of our convenience center locations that do not already have internet availability. The reasoning for this is multifaceted. First off, it will help me as a director be able to more efficiently and effectively dispatch the drivers to the sites so we can make the best use of our resources, including our labor, equipment, and fuel. Having cameras at facilities also helps give record of events that happen at the sites such as complaints on employees, accidents on site, and a reduction of afterhours dumping and scavenging of waste. Currently, 3 of our manned sites have cameras installed and in comparing the number of loads from March 24 to March 25 those 3 sites collected 10 tons more waste in 2025, and it was hauled on 9 fewer trips than 2024. The cost of adding cameras for all of the sites that don’t already have them is approximately $1,600. This is budgeted for in the other supplies and materials line”.

*Adding Scale House Operator and Software for Scales:

“I am requesting to add an employee for the scale house as well as software for the scales. The new contract for the transfer station operations does not provide a scale house operator. This will allow for future growth on the recycling side by allowing DeKalb County to charge for some of the materials that can be recycled at a cheaper rate than landfill, but a fee will still apply (e.g. sheetrock, shingles, pallets). This is important because currently TDEC has a goal for each County to have a landfill diversion rate of 25% but is expected to move to 50% this fiscal year to align with the EPA’s 50% diversion rate. DeKalb County was granted an extension on the reporting to try to reach the 25% for the 2023-24 fiscal year because they originally were below the 25% target. The software is necessary to help ensure accuracy of our billing, origin reporting, and tracking of different materials we may accept for recycling in the future”.

*Repairs and Maintenance of Roll off Trucks and Convenience Center Equipment:

“As you look through the line items on the budget you will likely notice that there is more money budgeted for Repairs and Maintenance. While improvements have been made to our fleet of roll off trucks there are still areas that need attention in order to extend the service life of our roll off trucks. We have been fortunate to get equipment back at a safe level of operation, but our preventative maintenance is lacking due to funding. The extra funds requested would allow for us to do more preventative maintenance which long term should reduce our breakdown maintenance and help reduce our maintenance budget in the future. As for repairs and maintenance for the convenience center equipment in the past there has been $0 budgeted. That leaves no money to be able to fix even the smallest of break downs such as hydraulic hose replacements, much less motor or pump replacements. While these units are generally low maintenance some of them have had very little done since they were installed, some as early as the early 90’s. The compactors at Snow Hill and Shiny Rock are showing signs of significant wear and seem to be on their last leg mechanically and could use some work structurally but with some work should be capable of seeing another 10-15 years of service. The compactors at Liberty and Midway seem to be in better condition structurally but the operation of the units are very slow and need attention”.

*Other Repairs and Equipment at Convenience Centers:

“The last large line item increase in my proposed budget is for other repairs and equipment at Convenience Centers. As mentioned previously some of this would be for equipment at Temperance Hall that would be primarily funded through grant money. Currently our grant match with TDEC is 10%. TDEC is giving priority to funding projects that eliminate unmanned dump sites. I would like to apply for the convenience center grant for Snow Hill as well to add a compactor. As I have mentioned in the past a compactor will hold 8-10 tons of waste on a consistent basis verses an open top container which will only hold 1.5 to 2 tons consistently. This will help reduce our transportation, maintenance, labor, fuel, and overhead costs for years to come by reducing our loads from our busiest site if funded by TDEC. $277k of the $327k in the Other Equipment and Other Construction line items is from the grant funding and our grant match, the remaining $50k in the line item is to make repairs to the convenience centers lots for items such as paving, primarily at Alexandria”.

*Changing Haul Fees for Roll off Containers:

“I would also like to propose that we change our haul fee for our roll off containers from $200 to $250 per load. There are some accounts that it takes us over 2 hours of time to service because of location or the customer owns the container. In the cases that the customer owns their own container we have to make 2 trips to the customer and back in order to service the container. By my estimations it costs approximately $100 per hour to operate a commercial truck. By servicing customers that are located on the county’s extremities it is costing the county more to provide the service than it is producing in revenue. $250 would still be significantly less than the private companies that service the area charge”.

Director Reed concluded his remarks by saying “Thank you for your consideration of these items. Please take into consideration that the non-labor items are to primarily help us be able to operate in a more efficient manner for years to come, but until we are able to get the changes implemented, we will have the costs of implementing the changes as well as the extra cost associated with non-operating as efficiently as possible. We are fortunate that TDEC offers grants on a regular basis that will help DeKalb County to be able to upgrade the services provided over a period of time. If approved the upgrades will more than pay for themselves,” said Director Reed.

April 23, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

As the county commission ponders which direction to go with a jail project, it will also soon be confronted with what to do with the 51-cent property tax increase for debt service adopted last year. Once a tax rate is established by the commission, it must remain in place for a year until passage of the following budget. The new fiscal year begins July 1, 2025.

The county’s current tax rate is $2.51 per $100 of assessed value , up from $2.00 the previous year and all of the increase (51 cents) was added to debt service in anticipation of funding proposed construction of a judicial center/jail project through the issuance of bonds not to exceed $65 million but that effort failed at the polls during a public referendum last November. Although the bond issue did not move forward the property tax increase still remains in place for another jail construction project yet to be approved.

During Tuesday night’s budget committee meeting, County Mayor Matt Adcock said the county needs to make a decision on the jail issue before passage of the 2025-26 budget.

“Once you pass your budget you cannot change your tax rate (during the year) and you cannot change where your money goes. Once you pass 51 cents in debt service its just stuck there,” said County Mayor Adcock. “We have just accumulated about $3.4 million in our debt service. They (county commission) really need to make a decision on the jail before we pass this budget because we can’t keep the 51 cents in debt service if we are not paying it toward some kind of debt. We would either have to take it out and put it in the general fund, capital projects, or wherever you want that 51 cents to go. This (budget) committee will decide that. But you will not know how much to put in debt service to pay for a jail if they (commission) don’t decide what they want to build or where they want to put it or whatever they are going to do. We need to know what we are building before this budget passes,” said County Mayor Adcock.

If the county is to eventually build a new jail to meet state certification standards, a site has to be selected, either at the current location or somewhere else.

During a three-hour meeting Monday night, April 7 the jail committee of the county commission met to discuss several options for land purchase and costs and to again explain to the public why a new jail is needed. During the public comment period later in the meeting, the committee took questions from a large group of residents who turned out to give their opinions and, in some cases to express their frustrations.

Sixteen people took to the podium to speak, and their concerns ranged from outright opposition to building a new jail especially in their neighborhoods to keeping construction costs to a minimum if a new jail is built.

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