Back in Part One of this editorial series, last week, I quoted part of a July 17 conversation between the Archuleta Board of County Commissioners — Steve Wadley, Ronnie Maez and Michael Whiting — on one side of the table, and on the other, Richard Vihel, representing the ‘Citizens for a New Jail’ committee appointed by the BOCC.
Mr. Vihel expressed his concern that the 2018 Archuleta County Fair is just a couple of weeks away, and the ‘New Jail’ committee still has no clear information about the tax increase that they’ve been asked to sell, to Fair-goers and other taxpayers.
As Mr. Vihel had reminded the commissioners, his committee was created by the BOCC for two reasons. The first reason was, ostensibly, to analyze the options available to the County government, in terms of providing a County detention facility as required by Colorado law, and — presumably — the cost of those options, to the taxpayers.
The second reason for the ‘New Jail’ committee’s existence is to actively sell the tax increase needed to fund a new jail. Based on the numerous BOCC meetings I’ve attended, I’m guessing a sales tax increase will appear on the ballot at around $29 million (including interest payments) payable over about 15 years.
This morning, we’re going to seriously consider that first reason. To analyze some options available.
In June 2015 (yes, folks, three years ago,) Town Council member Kathie Lattin was invited by the BOCC to participate on a citizens advisory committee whose goal was, ostensibly, to analyze the options available to the County government, in terms of providing a County detention facility as required by Colorado law, and — presumably — the cost of those options, to the taxpayers. (This sentence construction may sound oddly similar to the sentence I wrote three paragraphs earlier, and for that I apologize.)
Mayor Don Volger asked Ms. Lattin to summarize for the Council what the BOCC was doing about the closure of the County detention center, following a roof leak three months earlier.
Ms. Lattin:
“The County isn’t doing anything yet. The advisory committee is trying to figure out whether they should do two new buildings, or one new building and let the County staff stay in the current building.
“From the engineer’s report and stuff, the old building — whether it be the ‘old old building’ or the jailhouse facility part — to bring it back into repair is going to cost more than building a new building. So the last bit, the other night when we were talking, was that they are looking at the possibility of building a ‘justice center’ to house the courts, the [Sheriff’s Office] and the jail facilities.”
Ms. Lattin noted that the BOCC was focused on two County-owned properties, but was also looking at properties that the County might be able to purchase or obtain in a real estate trade.
“If anything is going to happen, they are going to move forward with the justice center, and leave the existing admin building where it is. That’s what’s happening. And their timeframe is within the next year-and-a-half to build the justice center.”
I suppose no one is surprised that the justice center was not, in fact, built within “the next year-and-a-half.” Ms. Lattin was, after all, talking about a multi-million-dollar local tax increase… not one of the most popular ideas in Archuleta County.
But let’s consider, for a moment, the idea expressed by Ms. Lattin in June 2015 — that the cost to bring the existing jail and Sheriff’s office “back into repair” would cost “more than a new building.”
We heard pretty much the same idea expressed on July 17, 2018, more than three years later, by Richard Vihel and ‘Citizens for a New Jail’:
“And we’ve concluded that we need a new jail, and that the old building is not going to… is not a viable alternative.”
The only viable alternative is a new jail, at a cost of perhaps $29 million. (The price on last November’s ballot was $26.6 million.)
I’ve listened to and participated in numerous discussions over the past three-and-a-half years, and I’ve heard only two numbers mentioned, relating to the cost of repairing and renovating the existing Sheriff’s office and detention center.
The repair figure mentioned by architect Brad Ash at the May 28, 2015, Courthouse Committee meeting (where both Ms. Lattin and I were in attendance) was “at least $3 million” to bring the old Courthouse building into fire code and ADA compliance. This estimate took into account the entire County Courthouse — courts, offices, jail.
During a public meeting a year later, in 2016, I asked architect Bob Johnson — an expert on jail facilities hired by the BOCC — what it might cost to completely renovate the existing jail facility into a “state of the art” detention center. Off the top of his head, he gave us a cost estimate: about $2 million.
In a Daily Post editorial back in June 2015, I shared the cost estimate the public had been given by County Administrator Bentley Henderson, for a new Justice Center — courts, Sheriff’s offices and detention center: $8 million.
In that same editorial, I analyzed the cost of the brand new ‘Public Safety Center’ completed in Gunnison, Colorado in the spring of 2015 — built for a county government serving a population (15,500) that was slightly larger than Archuleta County’s population (12,200). I had received an email from Gunnison County Manager Matthew Birnie with updated figures for that project. (My thanks to Mr. Birnie for his thorough response.) Gunnison’s brand new Public Safety Center (Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Operations Center and Jail) measured 34,000 square feet and was completed at a cost of about $11.9 million. The new Gunnison Courthouse (administration offices plus state court offices and court rooms) measured 41,000 square feet and total project costs came in at about $16.6 million.
That comes to 75,000 square feet of new ‘Justice Center’ facilities, at a total cost of approximately $28.5 million. According to my pocket calculator, the cost was about $380 per square foot (not including debt service.)
Our County government was telling us that same year, in 2015, that a similar building could be built in Pagosa Springs for $8 million.
Now, in 2018, we are being quoted at least $26.6 million as a sales tax increase, for a facility that would not include new Court facilities; it would include only a jail and Sheriff’s offices.
So when Mr. Vihel and the ‘Citizens fo a New Jail’ tell us that the renovation of the existing jail and Sheriff’s offices is “not a viable alternative”… wouldn’t it be nice if they could justify that statement with some valid cost estimates?
I said as much to our commissioners at their July 17 meeting:
“Thanks for allowing public comment. You had an interesting presentation from your committee about the proposed ballot measure, coming up in November. I would would like, once again, to urge you to let us know, as citizens, why the Courthouse facility that has served our community since I moved here in 1993, has become insufficient, unable to be remodeled, unable to be repaired, especially when there’s a vacant lot next door that’s been vacant for the past 12 years.
“I’m very much confused, and I think many other citizens are confused, as to why you will not tell us why it will cost $29 million to build a [new jail and Sheriff’s offices] when you already have a courthouse that’s functioned — for all of us — for so many years. And that has a new roof.
“We’d really like to see you come forward, and tell exactly what is wrong with the Courthouse, other than the fact that it’s been there since 1929.”
The next person to offer public comment was Rob Keating, a member of the ‘Citizens for a New Jail’ committee and a current candidate for County Sheriff, running against incumbent Rich Valdez.
“I’d just like to comment on Mr. Hudson’s comments to you, just now. I’m on that committee. We’re working very diligently to prepare the information that he is asking for. Please be patient and you will get it. And we are working on it.”
We’re trying our best to be patient. It’s been only three years, and it’s been only $130,000 spent by the BOCC on architect’s drawings for new facilities. I look forward, with abated breath, to hearing from Mr. Keating and his committee, letting us know why we can’t use the historic building we already own — plus a bit of expansion into the vacant lot next door.
Hell, maybe the project could include some additional downtown parking? Downtown businesses have been struggling with parking limitations ever since I moved here…