DIRT TURNED FOR COUNTY JUSTICE CENTER

JACKSON -- In 20 months, Cape Girardeau County officials hope to gather again for a grand opening of the new Cape Girardeau County Justice Center.

A ground-breaking ceremony was held Wednesday at the site of an $8 million jail expansion.

"There has been a lot of blood, sweat and tears, lots of gnashing of teeth and colorful discussion to get us to this point," said Sheriff John Jordan. "But we're sure glad to be here."

Over two years ago a committee began looking at ways to better house Cape Girardeau's prisoners. The existing jail is perpetually filled to capacity, and annually the county pays approximately $200,000 to house prisoners at other facilities.

At the end of November the county sold $6.9 million in bonds to begin construction of the jail expansion.

In addition, the U.S. Marshal's Service has awarded the county a $1.5 million grant toward construction of the jail.

"That grant gave our project a jump start," said Jordan.

Eventually, the expanded jail is expected to produce revenue for the county. The U.S. Marshal's Service has promised to house federal prisoners at the jail and will be paying a housing fee.

Architect John Dudley said the expansion will move the main entrance to the jail to Middle Street. Visitors and others who need to enter the jail will be off the highway, he said.

In addition, the jail planning committee and the County Commission approved a long-range plan for the jail.

"It is designed so that it can be repeated vertically," Dudley explained. The two-story building could become a three-story facility some time in the future if additional space is needed.

"We think this expansion will take us 15 to 20 years down the road," Jordan said. "But in 20 years, when another sheriff and another set of commissioners are facing an expansion, we hope to have made the process easier."

Jordan said the new facility will offer state-of-the-art services, including closed-circuit arraignments and electronic locks and computerized security systems.

"This is designed to really minimize the number of people that will need to be hired," the sheriff said. "We are making use of technology that is available to us today."

Space is available in the design for a courtroom inside the facility and office space for other related activities.

Associate Commissioner Max Stovall said: "We sure are glad to be to this point. And we'll be glad to be back here in 20 months to open this facility."