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Show UTA'i STATE P?F.S3 AS2II. ' 4:7 LAS? 330 0. : s.l: ua:i 81111 Public Safety complex in downtown Farniington? ' By GARY R. BLODGETT Editor FARMINGTON-A proposal to build a Davis County Coun-ty Public Safety complex in downtown Farmington -instead of the undeveloped area west of the city - was presented to the Sheriff Department's Jail Advisory Committee at a noon meeting Wednesday. Commissioner Harold Tippetts presented the proposal propo-sal of a new location and a much larger facility for discussion dis-cussion by the advisory committee. No action or official of-ficial recommendations were offered on the very tenta tive proposal. Comm. Tippetts said the new site proposal is on property south of the existing County Courthouse and Jail. If approved, the site would extend south from the present south courthouse parking lot for about one block - to about 150 South - and would include the property between Main and 100 East. It would mean purchase of properties from about 12 property owners, Comm. Tippetts noted. The Davis County Library may also be relocated, he said. Property in the area would cost an estimated $2 million, mil-lion, including site improvements, but there was no es- timate of the total construction and development costs. "Property at any of five locations west and northwest north-west of the city could be much less costly, but the trade-off comes with the utilities, streets, and other improvements im-provements already in place," said Comm. Tippetts. The proposal also calls for the jail facility to be 350 to 400 beds - almost double the size of the original proposal. However, the new facility will be "built to maximum capacity" whereas the original proposal called for about 200 beds with plans for expansion to Continued on peg two Public Safety complex for downtown Farmington? Continued from pog on about 400 beds in a modular design. "This is not feasible with the new property site so the jail complex will be constructed to maximum capacity and utilized as needed," explained Sheriff Brant Johnson. He noted that the jail population has been expanding more than anticipated during the past year when plans were outlined for 300 to 350 inmates in the next 20 years. ! ' He told the committee that Wednesday the jail housed 127 inmates and is designed for only 108. "And we have 18 more committed for the work-release program pro-gram this weekend," he said. "The county's population is expected to double in the next 20 years and we've got to plan for that expansion expan-sion right along with the public safety expansion," said Comm. Tippetts. "We are already busting at the seams and it's not desirable to expand the existing courthouse for more office space." He said the jail and court buildings probably would be separate. Between the two buildings, there would be facilities for the Sheriffs Department, emergency operations. detention facilities (cells), county attorney and clerk's offices, precinct and district courts, driver's license division, Utah Highway Patrol, parole offices, and Department of Recovery Services. "All are entirely or partially associated with public safety," said the commissioner. "Offices now used by these agencies would be utilized for other county or state governmental agencies." He noted that part of the existjng jail could be used for office space and some could be utilized for work-release work-release (weekend and part-time prisoners). The older section of the jail, built in 1963, probably will be demolished. Farmington Mayor Robert Arbuckle said he was "a little surprised and confused" because it was the first time he had seen the new proposal in the status that it was being presented. "What I saw before was not quite the same as I remember it," he said. "I don't remember it taking property owned by a dozen property owners, nor do I remember there being two separate buildings in the proposal. What I remember was court facilities atop the jail structure," he said. He stressed that there is undeveloped property just north of the present complex that should be seriously considered before improved properties are purchased and families have to be relocated. Studies for a new jail began with a master plan from Deland and Associates in 1983. The Jail Advisory Committee was organized the following year and studies were started to determine a probable site, size and cost of various types of public safety complexes. At first, there were five "probable sites" studied in west Farmington and between Farmington and Kays-ville Kays-ville west of Interstate Highway 15. Only two of these five original sites are still being considered. One is located west of Farmington near the west extension of State Street and the other is near Burke Lane. |