Residents urge commission to reject Smith Road site for proposed jail, citing schools and property impacts

Two District 4 residents told the commission that a proposed county jail on Smith Road is inappropriate for a residential neighborhood and urged commissioners to seek an alternative site.

Paul Miranda (District 4) said building a correctional facility on a parcel accessible by a narrow residential street and abutting school property would "fail the test" of compatibility with residential living and public welfare. He said rezoning requests and higher-density development already underway on Smith Road would make a jail particularly harmful to property values and neighborhood safety.

Jody Miranda (District 4) told commissioners the assessor estimates approximately 50.8 usable acres of the 71.5-acre Smith Road parcel; she said the remaining acreage contains a pond, gullies, steep slopes and treed sections with craters that would require work before being usable. Using the $1,800,000 purchase price cited by speakers, she calculated an approximate cost per usable acre of $35,433 before closing costs and asked whether the county's jail committee had considered usable acreage and the urban growth boundary.

Speakers requested that the commission pause or revisit the purchase decision, consider alternative locations, and weigh neighborhood impacts, traffic and proximity to schools before moving forward. There was no disposition or vote recorded on site selection at the meeting; the comments were part of the public-comment period prior to later appointment business.