Liberty County took another major step toward building a new county jail during the May 12 meeting of Commissioners Court, selecting White Construction as the construction manager-at-risk for the project.
White Construction was chosen after being ranked among the top firms by the county’s evaluation committee. Two other companies were also among the highest-ranked candidates considered by the County.
The new Liberty County Jail is planned for a tract of county-owned land adjacent to the Liberty County Law Enforcement Center on SH 146 North in Liberty. White Construction previously served as the contractor for the law enforcement center as well as the county’s northwest annex building in Colony Ridge.
County officials are planning a 600-bed facility with construction costs capped at approximately $100 million. Once completed, the jail is expected to provide additional bed space that could potentially be leased to other counties dealing with overcrowding issues.
Before moving into the regular agenda, commissioners heard public comments from Dayton resident Jeff Meador, who spoke on behalf of the White Oak Trails Homeowner Association regarding agenda item 8.15, which concerned the possible acceptance of Section 6 roads into the County road maintenance system.
Meador asked both the developer and Liberty County to upgrade the roads’ substructure before the roads are accepted by the County for maintenance.
Pct. 4 Commissioner Gerald Kolarik raised concerns during discussion of other roads being considered for approval into the County maintenance system, saying the County needs to ensure all required reports are reviewed before any roads are accepted.
Kolarik noted that Liberty County regulations require certain reports and documentation prior to approval. He expressed concern based on previous experiences with roads that were accepted by the County but later developed costly deficiencies.
During the meeting, Liberty County Sheriff Bobby Rader also updated commissioners on repairs and improvements underway at the existing Liberty County Jail on Beaumont Avenue.
“We’re still waiting on two doors. They are on back order. We will get them hopefully in November or December,” Rader told commissioners. “The exhaust/smoke purge fans have been ordered and they are saying it will be 8 to 10 weeks. When they are received, they’ll start at the west hall and proceed on with that.”
Rader said the jail is continuing to conduct 15-minute fire watches until all necessary replacements are completed.
“The HVAC system on the east hall is complete. Everything is working,” he said. “The camera system phase one has been done. Phase two has begun on the east hall now that the dorms are empty.”
He also reported progress on repairs to locks and doors within the facility.
“Our doors and locks on the west hall and six dorms on the east hall are fully functional,” Rader said. “They are going to return in June or July to finish that up as soon as all the construction stuff is done.”
According to Rader, the jail’s fire alarm system and fire panel are currently operating without active issues.
“The fire marshal from the city (of Liberty) was there and inspected, and we received a passed rating,” he said.
Rader told commissioners the jail has significantly reduced the number of deficiencies identified during inspections.
“At this time, we are down from 13 deficiencies to three,” he said. “The three deficiencies that we have are on the east end, where there are no prisoners.”
Commissioners accepted the sheriff’s report.