BY RAY SCHAEFER
Enquirer Contributor
INDEPENDENCE -- Kenton County Judge-executive Rodney "Biz" Cain said Tuesday he plans to choose a site for a new county jail within two weeks.
"I'm having to fit a lot of criteria," Mr. Cain said after Tuesday's Kenton County Fiscal Court meeting. "I've been pressing people to give me the information I need."
"It's been an aggressive process," Commissioner Nyoka Johnston said. "He's worked very hard on this. It's about time we as a county move forward on this."
Mr. Cain said there were several sites to consider, but he would not name them specifically or their general locations.
County Commissioner Bernard Moorman said the only criterion Mr. Cain has mentioned to him is that the site is convenient to all police departments. "We need a new facility," he said. "What I'd like is a tricounty facility. I'd like the state to get involved in the funding and the operating cost."
Rob Thrun, jail project manager, said he asked 19 architectural firms to submit qualifications to design the jail by May 15. He plans to name the architect by June or July.
The population at the present facility, on the top three floors and in the basement of the county courthouse in Covington, ranges from 365 to 375 inmates. The authorized capacity is 262. A group of inmates has filed suit in federal court over crowding.
In a related matter, Mr. Cain said he would not pursue a $1 million federal community development block grant that could have been used for land acquisition or extension of water and sewer lines and roads to a jail if 50 jobs were created within two years.
Mr. Cain said it was not worth trying to find a piece of property that is both acceptable as a jail site and able to be developed for industry for such a small amount of money.
In other action Tuesday, commissioners:
Approved a request for Covington to apply for a $1 million grant. City Manager Greg Jarvis said the money would be used to acquire property west of the site of the new convention center and would extend riverfront development west to near the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge.
Authorized the Northern Kentucky Area Development District to prepare job descriptions for jail employees.
Rejected a proposal by University of Cincinnati Professor Rakesh Govind to apply for federal money to collect environmental data in the county.
