Board authorizes jail remodel plan, temporarily repurpose juvenile hall during construction

Del Norte County supervisors voted unanimously to advance a single‑phase rehabilitation of the county jail, authorize temporary use of the County Juvenile Hall Youth Opportunity Center (YOC) for secure operations during construction, and direct county administration to work with probation to find alternate locations for programs displaced by the YOC’s temporary use.

The authorization follows a presentation by county staff and consultants on design options, costs and relocation alternatives for the jail, an aging facility that received a $3.1 million federal appropriation. The board was told the most economical construction approach is a single‑phase remodel estimated at about $10 million; available federal and state funding totals roughly $5 million, leaving an estimated funding gap the county would cover with Measure R and capital improvement funds pending final budget approval.

Why it matters: County officials described the project as necessary to address structural and operational problems at a jail built in the 1960s and substantially expanded in the 1990s. Presenters said the remodel would improve sight lines, staff workstations, intake processing and dormitory conditions, and would allow the county to provide safer, more modern care and programming for persons in custody.

County presentations and options Randy Hooper,…