Potter County Commissioners hold special meeting on jail expansion

POTTER Co., Texas (KFDA) - Potter County Commissioners held a special meeting to hear a report on the future of the already failing jail.

Following a failed jail inspection, months of heated debate back and forth on the best solutions for the jail, Kenny Burns, the hired architect, presented three options to commissioners.

Option one was expansion of the existing jail, which he says will provide its own issues with the 30-year-old jail due to major electrical, security, and bed upgrades that are needed.

“I just didn’t think there was a lot of value in continuing to explore trying to do something with that building, so I’ve said over and over again, let’s look at everything and consider everything before we decide on anything,” said John Coffee, Potter County commissioner.

Option two: Do nothing, which Burns said, “if you do nothing, there will be a cost to that.”

“I think we’re moving in the right direction. Won’t happen tomorrow, it’s not going to happen overnight, but I can also tell you that it’s going to cost a lot of money, and I’m a taxpayer in Potter County as well, and in my opinion, I’ll pay that tax to keep my county safe,” said Sheriff Brian Thomas, Potter County Sheriff’s Office.

And lastly, option three was a completely new jail, which commissioners, Burns, and the sheriff’s office were in favor of, but said they were not sure how it would be funded.

“I think the building is, what we’ve been told, it’s end of life. I felt that early on, and I wanted to consider everything, and I think after now going through that facility, I do not believe that it’s something that we ought to be further considering, although I don’t know how we’re going to pay for a new jail,” said Coffee.

Commissioners came to the conclusion that a new jail would be in the best interest rather than attempting to fix the already failing jail.

The immediate concern is how to pay for a project this large, and officials did not have a direct answer on when they would come to a final decision.

Burns brought up the importance of making a decision soon.

He said, “We have to look at today’s dollars versus tomorrow’s dollars.”

And in regards to a brand new jail, he said, “$200 million, wait 10 years, is $400 million, wait 20 years, is $1.3 billion.”