Monday, February 6th 2023, 6:04 pm
A new Oklahoma County jail is another step closer to reality. County Commissioners approved part of the budget allowing them to start the process of finding a location and an architect.
Oklahoma County commissioners said the approval to sell bonds is the first big step to addressing an even bigger problem, that being the Oklahoma County Detention Center.
Commissioners are starting the process of building a new jail here in Oklahoma County.
“The jail down the street, it's been an albatross around the county's neck since the day that it opened,” Myles Davidson said.
Voters approved a $260 million bond last summer to build a new jail that will replace the more than 30 year old facility.
“A high-rise jail is not a good idea,” Davidson said.
The new facility will solve many of their issues, according to County Commissioner Brian Maughan.
“We know what not to do, and I think those are going to largely be avoided in part because of our citizen oversight committee. We've created the first one in county history. We have blue ribbon experts,” Maughan said.
Commissioners released $45 million from the bond for the first phase of this project. He said the money could go towards anything from hiring an architect to purchasing land.
“I think we have a great opportunity to be able to build a campus of which we have mental health, we have our jail, we have diversion and we have other things we can put on it,” Davidson said.
Davidson said he's also looking ahead trying to figure out funding for operations.
“Currently we use ad valorem in tax dollars to fund that jail. We need to do something better,” said Davidson.
Davidson mentioned a few ideas for funding, maybe pulling from hotel tax or even a county sales tax.
“76 counties in this state have a sales tax, Oklahoma county does not so we actually do more with less than any other county in this state and we pride ourselves on that,” Davidson said.
Proposals to donate or sell land are due by March 6, 2023.
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