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Caroline County leaders propose design committee to weigh new detention center after $40M estimate
Summary
County commissioners heard a seminar-based recommendation to form a staff-led detention center design committee to review program space, policy and funding after engineering estimates suggested a new 100‑bed facility could cost roughly $40 million and require state partnership.
Caroline County commissioners moved on Nov. 18 to begin planning for a long-term solution to the county’s aging detention center, endorsing formation of a design committee to evaluate renovation versus new construction.
The commission’s chair summarized a recent seminar and said the county needs more program space and modern design features — including separate housing by age and gender and medical/negative-pressure cells — that the existing facility cannot accommodate. “I really believe that the most cost effective way for the County to move forward and have a long term solution is to pursue building a new facility somewhere in the County,” the Chair said during the discussion.
Why it matters: staff and consultants told the commissioners that meeting contemporary detention standards requires substantial program and medical space that the current structure lacks. The board discussed a planning-size estimate of a 100‑bed facility at roughly 40,000 square feet and cited structural-only cost estimates in the neighborhood of $800 per square foot — producing a structural cost figure that the Chair and other commissioners described as roughly $40,000,000. Commissioners observed the state currently funds about half of similar projects in some scenarios, which would leave the county responsible for roughly $20 million in capital costs under that assumption.
Board direction and next steps: commissioners directed staff to form a design committee composed primarily of county employees (planning/code, finance/grants, public works/facilities, corrections, office of law and emergency services) to start reviewing policies and design requirements and to consult with the Town of Denton about utilities and possible annexation issues if a new site is pursued. County administrator-level staff committed to meeting with state contacts and pursuing funding milestones tied to a March 1 state funding date discussed at the seminar.
Budget and program considerations: commissioners stressed sentencing‑and-sentencing-guideline variability could change future bed demand and urged the committee to plan for flexibility. They noted renovating the existing building (an $8 million renovation previously proposed) would likely address only part of the facility and could leave the county with limited expansion options and ongoing structural issues. Several commissioners urged maximizing state and federal grant opportunities and exploring USDA funding possibilities referenced by facilities staff.
The commission did not commit to a specific site or funding package on Nov. 18; it authorized staff to begin stakeholder outreach and to assemble the design committee to prepare scope, estimates and potential funding sources for future board review.
