Beltrami County commissioners voted 4-0 to approve option 3 of an existing jail study, authorizing demolition of the current jail and construction of a new sally port adjacent to the courthouse.

The motion to approve option 3 — "to demolish the existing jail and build a new sally port adjacent to the courthouse" — was moved and seconded during the board's regular agenda. The board called for the question and the motion carried unanimously.

Supporters of option 3 told the board they had weighed both capital and ongoing operational costs. Commissioner Sumner said the public comment period informed his decision, thanking the board and administrator for allowing community input: "I heard, you know, from a few people that, you know, wanted to demolish the other. A few of that were hoping to, possibly, their support option too. So and and I think given this opportunity for folks to come forward to express their their their opinions, I think was was helpful in in my decision." Commissioner Carlson described staff and consultants' work on cost estimates and design: "...Steve and Carl Sanderson and all the work that they did and Austin, and the work that, Clay McCarthy Architects have done. And I also wanna make a good shout out to Steve Shadrick, our Facilities Manager. He's done a great job..."

Board members said the study included consideration of long-term operational expenses as well as initial construction costs, and that retaining portions of the existing building was not financially feasible when ongoing costs were taken into account. The board did not adopt a construction schedule or funding source in the motion; the vote approves the recommended option from the study.

The motion passed by voice vote. The board recorded the outcome as "motion carries 4 to 0." The county will proceed with next steps identified in the design and operations committee's recommendation, including project planning and further administrative work to implement the demolition and construction plan.

No statutory citations or ordinance numbers were referenced during the motion.