Commissioners ask county council for nearly $900,000 to cover work on proposed community corrections facility

County commissioners asked the Vigo County Council to appropriate $899,503.04 to pay invoices for design and preconstruction work on a proposed community corrections and rehabilitation facility near the county jail.

Project consultants told the council the full design envisions a roughly 61,000-square-foot facility with about 250 beds and a total estimated cost near $41,000,000. Garamond Construction project executive Tyler Claypool said the design and construction estimate includes furniture and equipment and that the current phase is a 16-month construction schedule if the project moves forward. "This is a total cost to the county," Claypool said.

Commissioners asked for the near-$900,000 draw to pay invoices already incurred; they said the request is to “pay the bills to where we are at this point” and that a later decision would determine whether the county proceeds with the full project. Commissioner comments and some council members urged additional internal review before committing further funds.

Commissioners and county staff explained funding options and legal constraints. Commissioners noted two local income tax (LIT) accounts (referenced in discussion as fund codes sometimes called 11/14 and 12/33) hold balances that, under the county's local-income-tax authorizations, may be used for jail- or incarceration-related capital projects. A county official said the combined balances in those funds total tens of millions of dollars and that those funds have restrictions that limit how the money may be used until certain bond schedules are met. The transcript records that the December fund balance was described as “nearly $25,000,000” and one other fund at “nearly $15,000,000.”

Council members pressed commissioners for more detail on prior approvals, grant attempts and the project timeline. Several council members said they were reluctant to authorize large additional spending before the council had a full update on grant status, previous approvals, exact targets and commitments. One council member said the county previously applied for a $2.5 million state grant and later sought to increase the request to $5 million, which commissioners said was not approved and resulted in losing the funding opportunity.

Commissioners and project representatives proposed forming a small committee to work through operational questions, commitments, and a schedule of deliverables if the council later considers additional funding. At the meeting, no appropriation vote was recorded; commissioners asked that the near-$900,000 payment request be placed for council action at a later date after follow-up documentation is provided.

Public comment at the meeting included at least one resident who said the county needs treatment and rehabilitation capacity for people with mental illness and addiction, and who supported the proposal as a community resource.