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Deputy Mayor outlines $507M Salt Lake County bond to expand jail, add 300‑bed Justice and Accountability Center
Summary
Deputy Mayor Catherine Pfeiff told Draper councilors that a Salt Lake County bond on the Nov. 5 ballot would fund a $507 million package to expand the adult detention center and build a 300‑bed Justice and Accountability Center focused on reentry and behavioral health, and that the county estimates per‑day custody costs would drop from about $136 to $75 in the new center.
Deputy Mayor Catherine Pfeiff presented Salt Lake County's proposed public‑safety bond and urged Draper council members to share county materials with constituents ahead of the Nov. 5 vote. "So it's it's it's $507,000,000," Pfeiff said, presenting the county's top‑line figure and a breakdown of the package.
Pfeiff said the bond would fund two primary elements: a Justice and Accountability Center with approximately 300 beds (including 16 intensive residential treatment units) and an expansion of the county's adult detention center to add mental‑health units. "We anticipate 300 beds in the Justice and Accountability Center, 16 of which will be really intense treatment, residential treatment," she said. Officials described the accountability center as a secure, step‑down facility intended to provide reentry services — job connection, housing help, treatment and education — rather than long‑term housing.
Pfeiff gave cost‑allocation numbers the county has presented: roughly $100 million for the Justice and Accountability Center and about $427 million directed at jail expansion and mental‑health units; she also cited a $10 million allowance to demolish the aging Oxbow facility and described an earlier council set‑aside of $100 million to reduce the bond top line. "You can see here the days, per person per day, the cost in the jail is $136. . . . the accountability center is anticipated to cost $75 per day per person," she said, framing an estimated $60 per‑day savings per individual in the alternative setting.
Councilors pressed staff on staffing, security and how people would be admitted. Pfeiff said the accountability center would "not be under the sheriff's supervision" but would be secure and staffed with personnel trained in corrections and behavioral health. She said referrals could come from judges, pretrial release programs or crisis‑receiving officers using the county's new crisis receiving center.
Pfeiff stressed the bond is part of a broader county plan to add housing and support services and reduce cycling through the justice system. She noted the county council voted Aug. 13 to place the measure on the ballot and said, if voters approve, planning and construction work could begin immediately with an 18–24 month timeframe to move forward.
The presentation was informational; Draper council took no municipal action on the bond itself during the meeting.
