By HOLLY GASKILL
Construction on the Wells County Jail has reached its halfway point and is on track to finish by the end of the year. Currently, crews are working on the jail’s HVAC system, intake center, vehicle bay and roof.
Given the nature of the project, jail staff has grown to be flexible with day-by-day changes in operations. As areas of the building have been under construction, staff has sought alternative solutions to daily functions, moving inmates and storage or putting the building on lockdown.
More recently, the kitchen staff has been working at Life Community Church while the HVAC systems are installed. Because employees are taking supplies and ingredients back and forth, they’ve shifted their daily meals from two hot meals and one cold meal to one hot meal and two cold meals.
Additionally, inmate intake has moved while its previous location expands to include more cells.
With these changes, jail leadership continues to adapt to ensure the security of the building. According to Sheriff Scott Holliday, every construction person is vetted before they’re given access to the building.
Holliday mentioned the need for renovation when he first took office in 2019, and the project was later able to go through with CARES Act and American Recovery Plan Act funding. The project was approved at a budget price of $8.275 million.
“As the sheriff, it’s my responsibility to maintain a facility that’s adequate for housing inmates, and so to be able to do that in a safe manner — not only for the employees that work here — but to provide a safe environment for the inmates,” Holliday said. “That’s the biggest thing with this renovation.”
The facility itself was built in 1986 and was in severe need of renovations for its energy efficiency and structural issues. As an additional stressor, the jail has grown to house twice as many inmates since it was built. Most recent numbers reported 92 total inmates, just two below the facility’s capacity.
The next noticeable portion of the project for the public will be the replacement of the visitor parking to make the lot accessible for the fire department.
While construction has encountered delays with supply chain issues, Holliday said they plan to be finished by October or November of this year. Kitchen operations are expected to return to normal by next week, and roofing should be completed by the end of July.
holly@news-banner.com
