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Developers pitch $350,000 master plan to move Shelby County jail; public leaders and residents urge broader review
Summary
A developer team proposed a public–private master plan and requested $350,000 to study moving the Walter L. Bailey Criminal Justice Center to a 71‑acre greenfield site near New Chicago. Presenters highlighted operational and economic benefits; community leaders and some commissioners called for more outreach and for alternate‑site study.
Presenters from Cushman & Wakefield and a public‑private partnership team laid out a multi‑phase vision to relocate Shelby County’s jail from 201 Poplar to a 71‑acre greenfield site commonly called the old Firestone site in North Memphis and asked the commission to authorize $350,000 for a master‑plan study.
Kemp Conrad, Cushman & Wakefield, said the plan would deliver a site‑specific program, stakeholder outreach and tighter cost estimates: “This will be a preliminary planning and stakeholder engagement, not a commitment to construction,” he said. Al Dotson, the team’s P3 advisor, described the P3 structure as a way to allocate construction and financing risk to private partners while giving the county flexibility on purchase. Developers proposed the relocation could free up roughly 10 acres downtown for redevelopment and create economic activity in North Memphis.
Public and elected responses were sharply divided. Dr. Carnita Atwater, executive director of the New Chicago CDC, told commissioners she and community leaders had not been engaged before the proposal and said: “We do not want the New Chicago community to be a dumping ground for a jail.” Josh Spickler of Just City criticized the plan as a “romanticized” penal campus and warned facility design would not by itself prevent deaths in the county jail system. General Sessions Court Clerk Tammy Sawyer warned that moving courts and jail off downtown could increase delays and urged the county to include the clerk’s office and judges in planning.
Commissioners pressed the presenters on funding options and timeline: Conrad estimated a six‑month master plan and a 36‑month build for phase 1, while presenters repeatedly framed the $350,000 request as funding for planning only, not construction. Commissioners also raised environmental and juvenile‑co‑location concerns and asked that additional county‑owned sites, including Shelby Farms and downtown parcels, be included in any study.
Procedural outcome: the commission read an add‑on to the CIP requesting $350,000 and in committee amended it to require alternate‑site assessment; finance staff noted exhibits and account numbers were missing and recommended the item follow the regular process. Commissioners ultimately sent the add‑on back to committee for August 20 with the sponsor committed to add exhibits and funding details.
Why it matters: the proposal would reshape the county’s justice and downtown land use. It touches public‑safety operations, county finances, local economic development and neighborhood impacts. Presenters and many commissioners insisted robust community engagement and transparent negotiation terms will be required before any construction decision.
