- Several jail millages have repeatedly not been passed despite the Jackson County Jail's 'inhumane conditions.'
- The Jail Ad-Hoc Committee and County Commissioners met to discuss and vote on the three options proposed for the 2024 ballot.
- Which election the millage will show up on is still to be determined by the commissioners.
Conversations about the conditions at the Jackson County Hail are headed to voters once again in 2024. During the last walk-through, Sheriff Gary Schuette and Captain Anthony Stewart showed the infrastructural and plumbing problems that are currently happening within the jail, causing concerns for safety and overcrowding.
Tuesday morning, the Jail Ad-Hoc Committee and County Commissioners met to vote on a new millage that would appear on the ballots in 2024, and committee members made their cases.
Undersheriff Chris Simpson shared, "It hasn't been a picnic. We've been after these efforts since we came where, and it's really for the safety of the inmates and the safety of the employees."
Commissioners passed what's known as Option 3, a proposed millage of .90 mills. It's expected to cost between $47 and $54 million to renovate barracks into booking, add 250 all-purpose beds a women's dormitory, and start renovations to the administrative and training area of the jail.
In response to the meeting, Sheriff Schuette stated, "I am pleased with the progress of the commission, and believe rhetoric work done by the Jail Ad-Hoc Committee was valuable."
We will continue to follow the progress of this story and share what it could mean for voters and the future of the jail.
