Lang
2/26/25
The Iowa City City Council and Johnson County Board of Supervisors have both approved funding for a study to determine the merits of merging the law enforcement facilities of the two municipalities.
The six-month Shive-Hattery study will cost approximately $31,900, which will be split between the city and the county. It will consider a proposed site for a joint facility that would be built on city-owned land near the current Iowa City Transit facility between Riverside Drive and the Iowa River.
Both Johnson County Sheriff Brad Kunkel and Iowa City Police Chief Dustin Liston have indicated they would support looking into the cost-effectiveness of merging their agencies into one building.
The current jail and sheriff’s office facilities are cramped, old and facing structural issues, and Iowa City City Hall…where the Iowa City Police Department is located…is running out of room.
Bond issues that would have financed a new jail have been put before Johnson County voters for over a decade, but have failed to reach the 60% supermajority needed to pass.