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Pottawattamie County board authorizes design work on $7.7 million jail upgrade after facility assessment
Summary
After a consultant presentation flagged single points of failure and life‑safety issues at the county jail, the board authorized design and construction documents for three phases of work estimated at about $7.7 million and directed staff to seek public bids.
The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors voted to authorize design and construction documents for a multi‑phase renovation of the county jail after hearing a facility assessment that identified life‑safety risks and aging systems.
Jason Slack, identified in the meeting as the county director overseeing the project, said the jail opened in 1999 and most major mechanical systems have reached or exceeded their typical useful life. "This stuff doesn't run unoccupied — it runs 24/7, 365," Slack said, summarizing the assessment and why a staged approach is necessary.
Consultants from Optimize Systems told the board they organized repairs into three phases: (1) life‑safety and reliability work — replacing rooftop units, detention-area units, kitchen hoods and makeup air, and recommissioning smoke-control systems; (2) central‑plant redundancy to add back‑up capacity; and (3) operational improvements such as upgraded controls and visibility into equipment performance. The firm estimated roughly $5.6 million for Phase 1, about $1.0 million for Phase 2 and a little over $1.0 million for Phase 3 — a total near $7.7 million.
The consultant described multiple single points of failure: several rooftop units and air handlers were 27 years old, the chiller lacks redundancy, and smoke‑control and ventilation requirements have increased since the building was designed. "If one of these units fails, you're basically out of heating and cooling on part of the first floor," the consultant said, urging recommissioning and staged replacement to avoid emergencies in an occupied detention facility.
Supervisors asked about scheduling, equipment lead times and whether design would consider future additions. The consultant said deliveries for rooftop units can take eight to 12 weeks and that the design should consider capacity and redundancy to allow future expansion.
Board members expressed concern about funding and logistics but agreed the county should avoid a catastrophic failure. Supervisor Wickman moved to proceed with design and to include all three phases in the design package so the county can later phase construction; Supervisor Jorgensen seconded. The motion passed on a voice vote. Slack said the next steps are preparing design documents for public bid and returning to the board with cost proposals for the design work.
The vote authorizes the county to develop bid‑ready design and construction documents for the jail improvements; it does not itself appropriate construction funds. Board members said funding options will be discussed in a future capital‑improvement conversation.
