Does county need consultant on new center?

It would appear our typically tight-fisted county commission has been struck with a rare case of bureaucratitis.

The infection was caused by the juvenile center, the ailment that won't go away. The commission has been planning a new juvenile center for the 32nd Judicial Circuit (Cape Girardeau, Bollinger and Perry counties) for years, but the battle over how to execute that plan has been waged mostly over the past six months.

At issue is whether the new center, to be constructed on Progress Street property in Cape Girardeau -- purchased by the county two years ago -- should be a large $4.3 million facility or a bare-bones $2 million project -- or if a new facility is needed at all. Some commissioners have suggested the existing facility on Merriwether Street is adequate. What will best meet the judicial circuit's needs is currently a matter of dispute between county commissioners on one side and judges and juvenile officials on the other.

Juvenile judges and program coordinators say there is a need for the $4.3 million facility. But the county commission insists the county can't afford more than a $2 million center, with the other counties in the circuit -- Bollinger and Perry -- contributing much less each due to their lower level of usage.

Last September, the county commission halted progress on the new juvenile center, citing budgetary concerns. The battle has raged ever since.

Now the matter is before the Missouri Judicial Finance Commission, which decides spending disputes between judges and commissions. There's no promise when a ruling will come on the Cape Girardeau situation, but it will come.

That's the backdrop for this decision-making process. Judges have suggested hiring a consultant to look at juvenile department needs. The consultant's initial quote was nearly $98,000.

On Thursday, Commissioner Joe Gambill, a vocal opponent of the new center, said there's no way the commission will pay that amount for a study. The quoted price is for 10 separate analyses, and the commission only needs two, he said, including an analysis of how many beds are really needed to serve the circuit's juvenile needs.

The cheapest analysis on the list is $5,484 for a facility assessment, which the consultant estimates would take 38 hours.

Even that is far too much when the decision is about to be made by the Missouri Judicial Finance Commission at no direct cost to Cape Girardeau County taxpayers. A conference call is planned later this month involving commissioners, judges and a consultant to see if the cost of a study can be whittled down.

At this point, there's only one issue: If the county only has $2 million for a new facility, it only has $2 million. If an adequate juvenile center is needed and can be built for that amount, fine. If it can't, then someone better figure out how to make the existing center on Merriwether Street viable for the judicial circuit's needs.