Goodhue County approves contract for one juvenile detention bed pending attorney review

The Goodhue County Board voted to contract for one juvenile detention bed at Houston County, pending county attorney approval, to address intermittent shortages of local placement capacity.

County staff briefed commissioners on availability and cost comparisons. Staff reported that only Prairie Lakes and Houston County had beds available at the time of the briefing and cited Houston County's rate (transcript: "$2.50") as lower than the alternative (transcript: "$4.40"); the transcript did not specify the units (per day, per hour or other). Staff also said there are logistical concerns, including about transportation to facilities two hours away and uncertainty over how often the county will use a contracted bed.

Staff suggested starting with a single contracted bed to assess demand; prosecutors and law enforcement officials at the meeting said having a designated bed would reduce the operational burden on officers and court services. "We have to send them back home," one prosecutor said of juveniles for whom placement could not be found; having a bed would give police and courts a practical option for short‑term holds.

Commissioners discussed financing and agreed to use fund balance for an initial contract so the county would not deplete the existing line item; they asked that the contract be reviewed by the county attorney and that any substantive changes be brought back to the board. One commissioner noted an estimate that reserving a bed could cost "$90,000 to reserve a bed for a year" but the transcript did not specify whether that figure related to total or per‑bed costs and did not provide units. The motion to contract for one bed pending county attorney approval passed on a voice vote.