Wednesday, September 15, 1999
Industrial park to be home of Kenton jail
Elsmere site has room to expand
BY CINDY SCHROEDER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
INDEPENDENCE — In an emotionally charged meeting, Kenton Fiscal Court agreed Tuesday to build a new county jail within the Northern Kentucky Industrial Park in Elsmere.
Describing the vote as “the first step in a long jour ney,” Kenton County Judge-executive Dick Murgatroyd called for establishment of a Kenton County Jail Commission to make recommendations on everything from the size and design of the new jail to the potential for privatization.
“Additionally, it will be incumbent upon us as the stewards of the public trust to explore the feasibility of designing a corrections plan to meet the needs of the entire Northern Kentucky region,” Mr. Murgatroyd said.
While stressing that the focus will be on building a county jail, Mr. Murgatroyd said that the Elsmere site offers expansion room, should Northern Kentucky officials opt to develop a regional jail in the future.
Mr. Murgatroyd said that he would like to see construction begin next spring, with possible completion in 18 to 24 months.
In voting to acquire the 55-acre site west of Foundation Road in Elsmere, fiscal court members cited a costly environmental cleanup as the main reason for eliminating a leading site near Edgewood.
That reasoning was disputed, however, by Covington activist Craig Bohman, who was ejected from the county courthouse by a sheriff's deputy when he angrily shouted at Commissioner Adam Koenig after the meeting.
“What they have done is turn their backs on the citizens of the county to pacify the needs of the citizens of Edgewood,” Mr. Bohman said as he stood outside the courthouse Tuesday night. “... Edgewood votes 90 percent Republican, and (the all-Republican fiscal court) couldn't see past their next election,” he said.
Fiscal court members disagreed.
“Opposition based on emotion, money or future electoral concerns are not factors in my decision,” Mr. Koenig said, as he read from a prepared statement before his vote. “The only relevant is sues are the facts. I am sure that others will question that. That is their prerogative. However, anyone that does that is mistaken.”
Faced a decade ago with an overcrowded, poorly designed facility, Kenton County officials spent nearly $7 million renovating the existing jail in the Kenton County Administration building in Covington, rather than build elsewhere and risk angering constituents.
County officials now say that taxpayers have been paying for that decision ever since, mostly through crowding and higher operating costs.
As one of its last acts, the previous fiscal court had recommended building the jail on a site south of Interstate 275 and east of Ky. 17, or the 3L Highway.
However, when the new fiscal court took office in January, its members re-opened the search for jail sites, examining more than 40 properties, before narrowing their focus to four, including the 3L site.
Saying “leadership isn't always easy,” Commissioner Barb Black said Tuesday that the decision to eliminate the 3L site — a former auto parts junkyard — will save Kenton County taxpayers “untold thousands” in cleanup costs.
The 3L site had generated fierce opposition from residents of nearby Edgewood and Fort Wright.
In Edgewood, more than one-third of the city's 9,000 residents signed petitions opposing the 3L site. Residents also organized rallies, turned out in force at public hearings on potential jail sites, and bombarded county officials with e-mails and phone calls.
“As I've said from the very beginning, I applaud this fiscal court for not taking the easy way out,” said Edgewood Council Member Dale Henson. “They've done the fiscally responsible thing, and I think they've done the right thing by the citizens of Edgewood.”
Elsmere resident Neva Collins disagreed.
“I don't believe they made the right decision,” said Mrs. Collins, who added she is worried about the inconvenience to police, as well as the proposed jail's proximity to residents, including the 270 homes in the Turkey Foot Acres Subdivision, where she serves as president of the homeowners association.
“I believe that factors other then environmental concerns influenced their decision,” Mrs. Collins said.
In July, Kenton County officials dropped a potential site on Richardson Road from consideration, saying it was too small. Another site, the former Decoursey Yards in Taylor Mill, was ruled out because county officials said the owner was unwilling to sell, and the cost of making infrastructure improvements for a jail alone would be too expensive.
The current fiscal court also ruled out renovating the current jail, after consultants determined it would cost about $55 million to do so, and that operational costs would be 35 percent to 40 percent higher than with construction of a one- to two-story jail.
Ohio seeks new school-funding plan
Colleges battling binge drinking
Dropout rates on the rise
Hillcrest offers one last chance
Council pay hasn't changed since 1928
Police issue abduction warning
Death may change Air Force training
Industrial park to be home of Kenton jail
Mason annexes all of Kings Island
Merit contenders are named
Sickle cell testing stirs ethical debate
Neighborhood health fairs free
Program shares wheelchairs worldwide
Artist of the 'Black Lagoon'
GET TO IT
Pax will strengthen local UPN
'Side Man' puts playwright up front
Athletic group could solve facilities problem
Butler wreck 3rd double fatality in under four weeks
Citizens to get say on center
Clock moved to park setting
Congregation reflects on its 150-year history
Fiscal court approves sewer study
Officials tap leader for Warren drug unit
Ohio honors 8 local education programs
Police studying infant's death
Religious leaders to give peace chance
Separate schools for Monroe closer
Triathlete races for girl with cancer
TRISTATE DIGEST
