The final version of a plan to add square footage at the Monroe County Jail was approved at Monday’s meeting of the Monroe County Board of Commissioners.

Plans for expanding the jail began in earnest in late 2020, with Monroe County Sheriff Neal Rohlfing stating at the time that former sheriff Dan Kelley had raised the idea of expansion as early as 2010.

“We’re doing this because they were out of space 23 years ago,” Rohlfing said.

A proposal in 2020 that called for a $14 million dollar overhaul of inmate housing, administrative offices and storage had subsequently been pared down to a $2.89 million project which will not change the layout of inmate quarters.

The expansion will provide more space for sheriff’s department personnel as well as climate-controlled storage for the Monroe County Emergency Management Agency and a “state-of-the-art” training facility, according to Rohlfing.

The project will also create separate areas for evidence storage and processing, a problem which had been brought up in previous discussions due to its proximity to the facility’s break room.

Monroe County Board Chairman Dennis Knobloch lauded the plans, pointing out the reconfiguration allows for employee safety not only with potentially hazardous evidence, but also providing more space to potentially prevent the spread of illness – referring to the close contact personnel faced with each other and inmates during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The final plan approved Monday will also be revised from a version submitted in July prior to bidding.

A proposed 5,000 square foot basement addition was scrapped in order to bring the project cost closer to the $2.8 million of American Rescue Plan Act funds approved by the county board last October.

Rohlfing was joined by project manager Michael Schneider of Quadrant Design and Monroe County Maintenance Supervisor Joe Lewis to review options for the board to consider in light of recent bids for the project.

After a lengthy discussion, the board approved the low bid of $3.6 million submitted by Middendorf and Reuss Construction Company, then opting to approve a “change work order” which includes removing the basement work and reducing the total cost by $776,000 to a total of $2.89 million.

The revised layout will still add 8,000 square feet to the layout of administrative space in the building   

Rohlfing said the main reason for the basement was to provide needed storage not only now, but for future sheriff’s department employees “20 years from now.”

He added he was “open to the idea of cutting (the basement) out” and making the project more “comfortable” from a financial standpoint. 

“It’s unfortunate that there’s a small group of people that just have to try to politicize everything I do,” Rohlfing remarked.

“The prior sheriff proposed a jail expansion and nobody was out there grandstanding and saying a damn thing about that,” Rohlfing continued. “Now it’s a problem. Now it’s an issue. It’s a small group of people. They’ve been doing it for nine years and they’ll do it nine years from now. I’m here to stay. If you don’t like it, whatever.”  

Schneider said with the approval, orders could be placed to fabricate the structural steel for the project, which should be ready by January.

Also as part of the project, a new parking lot has been installed across from the jail on the south side of East Third Street to allow for the increased building size, part of which will take space away from the current parking area on the west end of the facility.

In other business, Monroe County Treasurer Kevin Koenigstein announced a tentative final version of the county budget for the upcoming fiscal year has been posted to the Monroe County website to allow the required time for public review.

The document may be accessed at monroecountyil.gov/budgets.

Koenigstein reported it was a “strong budget.” 

Current projections for county revenue in Fiscal Year 2024 are $11.3 million with $11.1 projected expenses, leaving the county with a $200,000 margin even with a $250,000 contingency fund budget.

 The final figures also include a 5 percent pay increase for all employees at the Monroe County Courthouse.

The levy for the next year increases 5 percent, the maximum under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law.

Koenigstein said the county could opt to go past the 5 percent threshold if commissioners thought it would need more funding due to inflation or for increased tort immunity costs, but Knobloch said he would like to see county residents pay taxes only for what is currently required.

The final hearing before the budget is passed will be held at 9 a.m. Nov. 30 at the Monroe County Courthouse.

Koenigstein also noted his department has made the first distribution of collected property tax payments, which is currently about 20 percent of the total due.

The first installment of property taxes from 2022 payable in 2023 is due Nov. 21 with the second payment due Dec. 21.