Hunter
08/24/23
A recent assessment of the Johnson County Jail and Sheriff’s Office found operations can continue there in the short term, but the facility is in need of immediate attention.
The Gazette reports that the owner of Axiom Consultants, Robert Decker, appeared at Wednesday’s work session of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors. He said his company’s assessment found that the building is in need of significant structural and overall repair soon, and delaying the work will only make the problems worse.
Axiom estimates replacing the building would cost the county between $9 million and $13.5 million.
Sheriff Brad Kunkel spent over an hour at the work session discussing the building’s condition, which is dealing with leaky pipes, temporary rather than permanent repairs, and a space insufficient for the current staff and inmates.
The facility opened in 1981 with a 46-inmate capacity and room for about 50 staff. Currently, about 100 people work at the facility, with the inmate capacity averaging about 90.
A work session will likely be scheduled at a later date for the sole purpose of discussing the next steps for the facility.
Voters rejected bond measures to build a new Sheriff’s Office and Jail in 2012 and 2013.