The recommendation is no more than 10 minutes from downtown, so that provides tons of options.

Also, they very much want to build a 1- or 2-story facility which means it would not be very visible no matter where it goes.

Maybe somewhere on General Pershing? There is a growing concentration of social service providers there.

The recommendation is no more than 10 minutes from downtown, so that provides tons of options.

Also, they very much want to build a 1- or 2-story facility which means it would not be very visible no matter where it goes.

Maybe somewhere on General Pershing? There is a growing concentration of social service providers there.

Agreed it should be close to social services. Also, access to public transportation for visitors and upon release should be a consideration.

it doesn't Cleveland county jail isn't this needs to be on property that is lesser value like next to one of our many landfills ..

I don't think housing people even on a temporary basis next to a landfill is appropriate.

The recommendation is no more than 10 minutes from downtown, so that provides tons of options.

Also, they very much want to build a 1- or 2-story facility which means it would not be very visible no matter where it goes.

Maybe somewhere on General Pershing? There is a growing concentration of social service providers there.

I kinda think the General Pershing area is doing enough to fulfill its "turn in the barrel". Within 1,000 feet you have a homeless shelter (low barrier); center for women leaving prison; elementary school for homeless children; Variety Care Medical Center; ASTEC Middel and High School campus; as well as an in patient psychiatric hospital with police receiving on the north side. What we neighbors wind up with is a high concentration of challenged people who walk the area 24/7. As a 40-year neighbor business, I am used to it, and have always been a clear-eyed realist and security conscious. But that don't mean I gotta like it, or want more.

yep moving this out of the downtown core would be a massive win ..
No it will not but one thing we can count is you making sure others here know you will be happy with that outcome if it does happen. That’s for sure.

1-2 stories, plus modern security considerations (current jail is pre-OKCB, pre-9/11, etc), means a pretty sprawling facility, not sure there's the space on pershing. Maybe by the airport or in some of the open space along the south side of 240?

Or.......... Crossroads Mall!

Seems like the old Pull-A-Part site would work:

1. Proximity & easy access to the downtown/courthouse.
2. Somewhat isolated and not visible.
3. Plenty of land and room for expansion.

Seems like the old Pull-A-Part site would work:

1. Proximity & easy access to the downtown/courthouse.
2. Somewhat isolated and not visible.
3. Plenty of land and room for expansion.

This is a pretty good idea actually for usage of the site. Out of site out of mind and still good access use.

Good point on pull apart site. We'd noted previously how problematic that site was for other uses due to access restrictions, but that kinda makes it great for a prison.

I don't think housing people even on a temporary basis next to a landfill is appropriate.

Crossroads Mall is next door to a landfill, which houses an elementary and high school. Its also not way out in the middle of nowhere.

Sometimes necessary things like landfills get bad stigma just like jails do. Its all about design and how you run it. Just saying.

Was the landfill there before the city grew out to that area? I'm not familiar with the history. Slightly different situation if that's the case.

I don't think housing people even on a temporary basis next to a landfill is appropriate.

this is lol

Prisoners are being required to pay for their own incarceration. The old State Health Department Building on 1000 NE 10th Street currently houses a division of the Department of Public Safety. The building could be remodeled and a new expanded wing to house incarcerated individuals.



https://gh2.com/portfolio/Civic-Government/StateDeptofHealth/data1/images/1gh2capitolbuildings742.jpg

. . . Also a mental health complex could be built adjacent to the property.

We all understand that no one wants this in their backyard. With the right design this building could be retrofitted to house the Oklahoma County Jail and save this wasted space. IIRC the building is 11 stories, you would probably need to build another structure next to it.

...With the right design this building could be retrofitted to house the Oklahoma County Jail and save this wasted space. ...

Can it, though? I thought jails/detention centers/prisons had to be basically purpose-built that way from the beginning due to all the extra design/elements necessary to make it a jail/prison? Are there successful examples of office bldgs retrofitted to be jails/detention centers/prisons in the US?

Prisoners are being required to pay for their own incarceration. The old State Health Department Building on 1000 NE 10th Street currently houses a division of the Department of Public Safety. The building could be remodeled and a new expanded wing to house incarcerated individuals.



https://gh2.com/portfolio/Civic-Government/StateDeptofHealth/data1/images/1gh2capitolbuildings742.jpg

. . . Also a mental health complex could be built adjacent to the property.

We all understand that no one wants this in their backyard. With the right design this building could be retrofitted to house the Oklahoma County Jail and save this wasted space. IIRC the building is 11 stories, you would probably need to build another structure next to it.
Uh, with all due respect, no.

I hate to admit it, but I think the old Acme Brick pit at NW 10th & Villa would make a good spot. I think it is large enough (like 10 plus acres?), with easy access to OKC Boulevard, I-40 and I-44. It was filled from roughly 1980 to 2000, so fill technology should be more modern and solid.

Can it, though? I thought jails/detention centers/prisons had to be basically purpose-built that way from the beginning due to all the extra design/elements necessary to make it a jail/prison? Are there successful examples of office bldgs retrofitted to be jails/detention centers/prisons in the US?

True. So how did we end up with the present County Jail.

You could conduct a study on the building. This is probably as close to the courthouse as you can get.

I like what they have in Dallas County. Just across the river from downtown, they've built up a large courthouse and jail complex. There's enough expansion room over there that the thing is just surrounded by surface parking. You address a lot of security concerns and transportation costs when you house the inmates adjacent to the courthouse--and it would be advisable to keep everything downtown or near enough as many of us lawyers cover both civil and criminal dockets, so move those buildings too far apart and you're going to end up with a lot more civil continuances because we're required to handle criminal matters first.

I like that some folks are trying to think outside the box and remodeling old facilities, but there's one thing we've learned from this jail, if anything, and that's that jails have unique infrastructure requirements and that the County needs to work closely with experienced architects and consultants to get this done right.

True. So how did we end up with the present County Jail.

The lowest bidder won.

The lowest bidder won.

So we got what we paid for. The guy who was paid a $50,000 salary to check the quality of those materials to build the current county jail just sat on his hips and didn't inspect anything.

BTW Midtowner, I like your river proposal...



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvPB4IDBTe4

The lowest bidder won.

No. It was a corrupt design procurement process that led to a faulty design.

Not so sure a sprawling facility is the best option for a county jail. A prison maybe but county jail moves more people frequently. Better to keep a narrower footprint. Should be at least 5 stories. The pull a part yard or villa/general Pershing BLVD ideas are great.

Not so sure a sprawling facility is the best option for a county jail. A prison maybe but county jail moves more people frequently. Better to keep a narrower footprint. Should be at least 5 stories. The pull a part yard or villa/general Pershing BLVD ideas are great.

I am 99% sure it will be no more than 2 stories.

No. It was a corrupt design procurement process that led to a faulty design.

And led to successful lawsuits against the contractor and design firms.

I am 99% sure it will be no more than 2 stories.
Then to be anywhere close to downtown it would have to be on the old pull apart yard, no? IIRC, they’re aiming for 700-900 beds?

^

The recommendation is no more than 10 minutes from downtown.

That's up to a 10-mile radius which could be almost anywhere.

^

The recommendation is no more than 10 minutes from downtown.

That's up to a 10-mile radius which could be almost anywhere.
That greatly depends on the route and location. Are they defining downtown as the CBD limits only? The center of it? Is that as the crow flies? Driving to I-240 on I-35 could take 5 minutes or 15 depending on rush hour. Hell the other day it took me almost 20 minutes just to get to I-40 from I-240. Are they just looking at locations and Google Mapping it? Then going with it if it comes under 10 minutes? Sorry I have a lot of questions about that 10 minute thing...

OKC is a low traffic city, for now. Doubt we will still be able to say that going into the next decade. I'm back in the city until January and been here for a few months. I have noticed a massive uptick in traffic and freeways definitely seem to be full more than they used to.

L/E vehicles can get through traffic when you can't.
Just sayin'

So we got what we paid for. The guy who was paid a $50,000 salary to check the quality of those materials to build the current county jail just sat on his hips and didn't inspect anything.

BTW Midtowner, I like your river proposal...



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvPB4IDBTe4



Ugh John Wiley Price, thought he was under investigation

L/E vehicles can get through traffic when you can't.
Just sayin'
True but for transport busses I doubt they’ll be in emergency mode. Los Angeles has a secondary facility that’s located clear out near Santa Clarita.

I can't imagine any part of OKC wanting the jail relocated to their part of town. It needs to be in close proximity to the courthouse.

Exactly, great point. I'm trying to think of any other big city that doesn't have a jail in close proximity to it's court system downtown. .... Who wants acres after acres of 1-2 floor jail near them outside of the downtown core? Here in Seattle, the King County Jail (similar size to OKCs) is literally right across the street from King County Courthouse, Seattle Municipal Court and two blocks from Seattle's tallest building. Doesn't seem to be much of an eyesore/problem here and the building itself actually adds to the skyline.

IMO, it's OKC's lack of development around the jail/complex what is bringing property values down there not the jail itself necessarily.

Update from Free Press:

https://freepressokc.com/ok-county-commissioners-endorse-recs-for-new-jail-on-new-site/

To the point of the Dallas jail, if you're not directly connected to the courthouse and can walk through a tunnel or something to get there, then you're transporting. And if you're transporting, it doesn't really matter if it's a 5 minute or 15 minute drive.

Our County Office building and courthouse are embarrassing as they are now too. To me, I think this would be a good opportunity to create a new County office that IS connected to the jail so that everything is connected.

exactly, move the jail operation to the current Oklahoma County office building and build a new mid/high-rise elsewhere in downtown for the county offices. Also repurpose the existing OK County jail building as additional county offices or sell to the city or feds.

with this we get a low-rise jail that's connected to the courthouse and a repurposed Oklahoma County (jail) building and a new mid/highrise Oklahoma County Office building.

That would be nice but highly doubt that happens. Too progressive for Oklahoma.

For what it's worth. The courthouse being connected to the jail isn't that much of a priority nowadays. Alot of inmates get arraigned or can have a docket call via video teleconferencing.

I agree G but I think we should plan for the worst case scenario and not design our new jail based on the 95% non-violent offenders. ..

Some good news about voting for the citizens advisory panel:

https://freepressokc.com/jail-trust-brings-back-citizens-advisory-board-elects-leadership/

Trying to grab maps 4 funds

https://www.news9.com/story/61d8dcf296eadd0bf8a454b3/county-leaders-eye-state-covid19-maps4-funds-for-new-jail

Trying to grab maps 4 funds

https://www.news9.com/story/61d8dcf296eadd0bf8a454b3/county-leaders-eye-state-covid19-maps4-funds-for-new-jail

Not cool - those funds are for mental health facilities, not for more of the same jail-serving-as-mental-health-facility-because-none-exist crap, get the funds somewhere else, should've been figuring out how to get them for at least 10 years since that's how long (if not earlier) it's been known that place needed to be replaced.

If you're looking for the state to contribute any funds, you need to talk to the City of Oklahoma City and the FAM Museum folks.

As for funding the jail mental health facility with MAPS 4 Funds; those funds ($40 million) are already dedicated to a mental health, addiction and restoration center. The center doesn't need to be associated with or apart of the county jail complex.

‘COVID is our friend’: Jail leader Greg Williams recorded praising pandemic (https://nondoc.com/2022/02/08/greg-williams-mark-opgrande-covid-recording/)

sick

Misleading headline. But crappy wording by him, and it lends itself to misinterpretation.

sick

Yes. From the Covid.

The law requires the jail to be no more than 10 minutes away from the courthouse.

The law requires the jail to be no more than 10 minutes away from the courthouse.

Where in law does it say that?

The law requires the jail to be no more than 10 minutes away from the courthouse.

someone should let Cleveland county know this their jail is 13 or 14 min away from the court house ..

someone should let Cleveland county know this their jail is 13 or 14 min away from the court house ..

It may just be an Oklahoma county law. I am not sure.

Where in law does it say that?

Good question. I have been in a few of the meetings about finding an new location. I was told it has to be no more than 10 minutes away by law.

If there were a law. It would probably be based on distance and not time.

This was the only I could find after quick search and was from Administrative rules:

New facilities and substantial remodeling of facilities (after January
1, 1992). Plans for the construction of a new facility or the substantial
remodeling of an existing facility shall be submitted to the Department
for review and approval. Detention facilities are encouraged to submit
plans to the Department for any re-modeling or repair that does not meet
the substantial remodeling threshold to ensure standards are met.
(1) A new detention facility shall be geographically accessible to
criminal justice and community agencies.

There is actually a statute that allows for other counties to keep prisoners if that county doesn't have a jail so law seems to recognize that don't have to have one.

Oklahoma Statutes Citationized
Title 57. Prisons and Reformatories
Chapter 2 - County Jails
Section 64 - County Without Prison
Cite as: O.S. §, __ __

When there is no sufficient prison in any county, every judicial or executive officer of such county who has power to order or sentence any person to the county jail, may, upon application of the sheriff, order any person charged with a criminal offense whereof such officer has jurisdiction, and ordered to be committed to prison, to be sent to the jail of the county nearest having a sufficient jail, and the sheriff of such nearest county shall, on exhibit of such order, receive and keep in custody, in the jail of his county, the prisoner ordered to be committed as aforesaid, at the expense of the county from which said prisoner was sent, and the said sheriff shall, upon the order of the officer committing such prisoner, redeliver such prisoner when demanded.

Good question. I have been in a few of the meetings about finding an new location. I was told it has to be no more than 10 minutes away by law.

I’d recommend you take a less credulous approach when told these types of things.

i think the 10 minute thing was mentioned in a council discussion

So at the end of the day the 10 minute claim was B.S.

bond vote set for a new jail ..... (will not raise tax rates )

https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/2022/04/05/bond-election-scheduled-june-28-oklahoma-county-jail-funding/7248068001/

what are the details of the three options? Locations? Renderings? Probably important to know before voting (@ you, Daily Oklahoman). I tend to agree with the citizen who stated the need for a mental health facility and a revamp of the jail.

This is something congress started a few years ago (wiping away funds for mental health) and we have been dealing with that decision nation wide over the recent years (mostly, homelessness and assaults at the highest levels ever), yet nobody will bring this up to the current administration as the needed fix. You can't fix someone in a mental state by throwing them in jail, that only aggrevates the problem that we see inside the jail (killings, attacks, etc). Mental health patients need special facilities because they're PATIENTS, and I assure you if national funding were restored the problems we see with homelessness and attacks will return to levels that cities/counties can better deal with.

They don't have a site location. My best guess would be if the MAPS 4 Multipurpose Stadium is built on the 100 acre OKANA site then that leaves the potential sites where the stadium was going to be considered available for the new Oklahoma County jail site:


Farmers Market- West of Classen and just north of I-40
Wheeler Park- Currently owned by the city
Producers Coop- Just south of Bricktown.

The City completely remodeled Wiley Post Park a block from Wheeler Park with plans to remodel Wheeler Park. That leaves the Farmers Market - West of Classen and just north of I-40 as a potential site.

We know what they are asking for the Producers Coop site per acre, so that leaves the Farmers Market site off I-40 & Classen since it's closer to the Oklahoma County Courthouse at 320 Robert S. Kerr Avenue. There's land surrounding the OKANA site owned by The City that may also be suitable for building the county jail.

The Farmers Market site seems more feasible.

I had suggested the old Pull-A-Part site. Its close and away enough from downtown if that makes sense. And in a isolated area.

I had suggested the old Pull-A-Part site. Its close and away enough from downtown if that makes sense. And in a isolated area.

Right by the river? Serously?

I'd say move it away from downtown. Either somewhere between downtown and the fair grounds or farther away.