$5 million jail could save taxpayers money over the long run
WEST BRANCH, MI -- A former car dealership is now the brand new Ogemaw County Jail.
This $5 million facility could save taxpayers in the long run.
The new jail in West Branch not only has more inmate beds than the old one, but also some new features that will help them save on security costs.
"All we did is kind of gut it, and we kept the exterior structure, we just went over the top of it with a steel exterior," said Sergeant Steve Pazzala of Ogemaw County Corrections.
What was once a showroom is now the slammer. Plans for a new Ogemaw County Jail began back in 2006, and now, its reality. A county bond passed, construction began, and the $5 million corrections facility opened its doors to inmates this past Sunday. I caught up with Sergeant Steve Pizzala and got a behind the scenes look.
"They think, well, do we really need that big of jail, just like you asked the question, 'do you really have bad people in a small, local, county jail?' It kind of surprises them, and I think they're pleased with the project, I think they did really well," said Pizzala.
This new facility takes over the former facility that was located in the Sheriff's office. The old facility had 26 beds and had no vacancy.
“Our average daily population, or ADP, was probably about 66 to 67, so we were pushing the 70 mark very quickly," said Pizzala.
It was so full, they'd have to ‘house-out inmates,’ or find a different jail in a different county to put the inmates in. This was pricey. It'd cost the jail $28-to-$35 a day depending on what jail the inmate went to, and it worked out to be a pricetag of more than $400-thousand a year to do this. The new facility has 125 inmate beds.
“If we house in, if we can house in 20 to 30 people on a daily basis, we can help considerably with not only the cost of running the facility but paying off the bond as well," said Pizzala.
Housing in could help save money for tax payers in the long run.
Pizzala says the jail has a state-of-the-art security system. Everything can be controlled from the control room in the middle of the jail.
Another neat thing? Cells are equipped with video visitation, so inmates can visit with family through video saving on extra staffing.
