A consultant presenting to the Meigs County Commission recommended two principal paths for the county jail: a targeted upgrade of the existing structure to meet current code or development of a new housing area to reach a 130-bed capacity.

On the existing facility, the presenter said portions of the jail date to 1962 and 2002 and that structural and systems work has been performed episodically; a code-compliance upgrade was estimated at a planning-level cost of about $6 million to $8 million and, after work, the facility would likely accommodate roughly 40 inmates (a reduction from the licensed 56 beds). "We recommend a budget of approximately $6,000,000 to $8,000,000 to upgrade the existing facility to current code," the presenter said.

For a new or expanded site, the consultant showed an apples-to-apples comparison of three options (Memorial Drive site, Kennedy site and expanding the existing jail). He reported the Memorial Drive and Kennedy site concepts and a 130-bed expansion on the existing site were roughly $4$5 million apart in current estimates and placed a new 130-bed project in the ballpark of $25 million to $30 million once soft costs and contingency are included.

The presenter emphasized phasing and operational logistics: a workable plan could preserve existing support functions (booking, medical, kitchen, laundry) in place while adding new housing adjacent to the existing site, but this would require temporary arrangements for intake and services for months during construction. He flagged additional needs such as parking, three-phase power and, potentially, land acquisition for long-term expansion.

Commissioners and speakers also discussed alternatives to full construction, including continuing to maintain the current ~50-bed operation and farming out overflow at per-diem rates (speakers cited roughly $70 per day for off-site housing). The presenter and a named state official discussed state housing payments and transportation costs; the transcript includes a cited state payment of about $43 per day for housing certain state inmates but noted county per-diem and transport costs often exceed that rate.

The presenter reminded commissioners of an upcoming certification hearing scheduled Dec. 3 in Nashville and urged the county to prepare a plan of action addressing deficiencies and proposed timelines to preserve certification; he offered to help draft the plan for the commission's presentation.