I understand there was a $24 million grant for the expansion of the county jail. The sheriff said last March that the project would start within a year. Is it still on schedule? How many jobs will be created, and when will they start hiring? — Curious, El Centro
Back in March 2012, Imperial County was awarded millions for the development of a two-story structure on the west side of the jail that would provide 220 beds for inmates, a classroom, a larger infirmary and the installation of new devices that would go toward modernizing the jail facility. At the time Sheriff Ray Loera said construction would start within a year, and they are still on schedule, Loera said in an interview Monday.
What has changed in the past year, though, is the amount of money the county has been awarded. The county was first given nearly $24 million, but because some other counties have backed out of their grants, Imperial County was able to obtain the full amount it had originally requested, $33 million, Loera said. That will allow the Sheriff’s Office to make the facility more advanced than what was going to happen with the original $24 million funding.
That being said, the project is out to bid, though no company has yet been chosen to start building the facility, Loera said.
It would be the company itself that would hire anyone for construction, but as a company has not been chosen yet, it’s not clear when they would start hiring construction workers.
Beyond construction jobs, there will be new people needed to man the jail. Construction could last for another year or so, and at that point, personnel would have to be in place to staff the new facility, as it is part of the requirements of the grant, Loera said.
That would mean more jobs for the area, though the schedule for hiring and training has not been finalized yet.
Loera added that he and his staff are working with the Imperial County executive office to figure out how many new positions the county will be able to staff.
What Loera could say for certain was, “it will certainly increase our jail staff at this point.”
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