COMMISSIONERS’ PROCEEDINGS
May 23, 2019
Commissioners Robert ‘Pits’ DeArmond and Bill Bullock, and Administrative Officer Angela Newell were present.
8:30 Pledge of Allegiance
John Prinkki met with Commissioners for Public Comment Period to discuss the wind farm formerly known as the Mud Springs Et. Al. Wind Project. John congratulated Commissioners on the wind farm.
9:00 Personnel Policy Revision. Commissioner Bullock noted he would like to continue to allow CDL holders to self-exempt from the Medical Examiner Certificate.
9:50 Commissioner Bullock moved to approve personnel policy as amended; Commissioner DeArmond seconded; motion carried.
10:15 Commissioner Scott Blain joined the meeting.
11:00 Gary Levine from Spectrum Group Architects met with Commissioners to discuss planning for a jail facility. Sheriff Josh McQuillan and Carbon County News reporter Eleanor Guerrero were present. Gary noted information needs to be gathered from surrounding counties that may contract for prisoner housing to determine what is the proper size for the facility. Gary noted it is best to design the facility for 90% occupancy for more efficient operations. Commissioner Bullock noted have had some conversations with Stillwater County; they would contract for 30 beds. Gary noted it would be worth exploring interest from counties within a 300-mile radius. There was a discussion regarding the possibility of co-locating dispatch in the jail. Commissioners noted they want to design the facility to ensure the County has the ability to expand in the future. Gary noted the County would need approximately 23,000 sq ft for a 100-bed facility; based on Kalispell’s sq. ft cost a 100-bed facility would be approximately $14,000,000 and would take about 25 full-time employees to run. There was a discussion about the planning process.
Sheriff Josh McQuillan noted the issues with the current arrangement; for the last District Court day he had Reserve Officers and Deputies on shift at 4:00 am and not off until after 10:00 pm for prisoner transports. He noted the office was maxed between transports and security for court and he had to pull a Deputy out of court to attend a domestic disturbance call with him in Fromberg. There was over 1000 miles driven on that day.
Sheriff McQuillan also noted issues with getting violent offenders into contracted facilities. McQuillan noted there are offenders not in jail that should be, but there is no space for them. There was a discussion about determining the per-bed daily rate and scheduling inflation increases for contracts with other counties. Gary estimates the planning process will cost approximately six to eight months and about $150,000.
12:00 Adjourned
Respectfully submitted: Angela Newell, Administrative Officer