BY EARNEST WINSTON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COVINGTON -- The hot-button issue of where to build a new Kenton County Jail led to a packed house at Tuesday's fiscal court meeting.
The crowd, which overflowed into the halls of the second-floor room, consisted mainly of homeowners and city officials from areas where sites for a jail are being considered.
The two sites the county has publicly said it is considering for a jail are:
- Off Webster Road in Independence.
-
Feiser Road in Ryland Heights.
County Judge-executive Rodney "Biz" Cain said the county is not near a decision on where to construct the jail. No deadline has been set when to choose a location.
"There are more properties to look at," said Mr. Cain, who did not disclose other sites the county might be considering. "We welcome your input."
Mr. Cain said other possible jail sites "will be named as we go along."
Independence Mayor Isaac "Ike" Gabbard and Councilwoman Barbara Gabbard, the mayor's wife, told fiscal court it acted inconsiderately when it failed to inform city officials about the possible jail site in Independence.
"I feel that would have been the proper thing to do," Mr. Gabbard said, adding that he learned of the site in his city shortly before Tuesday's meeting.
Ryland Heights resident Jeff Jarboe prepared a multipage document for fiscal court members of reasons why the jail shouldn't be built in his city.
Among them were concerns for: residents' safety, a lack of accessible roads and no interstate access, the area's lack of a sewage system, the town's residential growth and lengthy travel time for far-away police departments in the county.
"It is economically sensible to locate any project of this sort near the middle of the county, where the infrastructure is in place and is least intrusive to the citizens," Mr. Jarboe said. Fairview Mayor Harold Parks said the proposed jail site in Ryland Heights would bring unwanted traffic to his nearby city.
Major problems at the current Kenton facility are crowding and high operating costs. The high costs stem from the building's being spread over four floors in the Kenton County Building, making the jail more expensive to staff.
Population at the jail has hovered at 365 to 375 over the past three months. Official capacity is about 250. Inmates have filed a lawsuit in federal court over conditions.
Commissioners Bernie Moorman, Steve Arlinghaus and Nyoka Johnston strongly criticized the news media for "prematurely" printing the jail sites under consideration.
