County bails on fall jail bond vote

As the county prepares to go to the printers for ballots for the Nov. 5 election, there is one item that will not be included -- a bond issue for a new jail. The Board of Elmore County Commissioners voted to table the bond issue, sending it back to the citizens jail committee for more work.

Hank Redford, chairman of the citizens committee, explained that "a week or so ago, it was my understanding that we had a consensus to proceed with the plan to put the issue before the voters at the November election. But now some members of the committee have expressed some concerns."

Committee member Chris Alzola said she felt there were still a number of questions that needed answers before she support a bond issue. She noted that "cheapest is not always best," and wishes to know more about the long-term plans the county may have.

Merrilee Hiler, also a committee member, echoed the feeling that there were still a lot of unanswered questions. She feels the committee needs to take more time to talk with judges, etc., to find out if and how a facility affects sentencing. She said the committee may not have pursued all of the options enough.

Committee member Jim Smith said the jail is just a small piece of the "judicial pie" and he feels the need to look more closely at the broader issues before presenting a bond issue to the people.

Tim and Dessa Gunning, both members of the committee, said they were disappointed in the comments they were hearing. Both said they felt the proposal the committee had come up with was a good plan -- one that would meet the county's immediate needs as well as carry it into the future.

Sheriff Rick Layher also expressed his disappointment, noting that while he understands the concerns, he and his staff have worked hard to save the county money. "The people of the county recognize we have a problem. There is an obvious need," he said.

Commissioner Larry Rose said he agrees there is a need. But he is afraid the citizens will turn down a bond request at this time, because of the economy, and other concerns. "We are going to have to do something or we could spend millions on litigation," he said.

He said he hopes if we can show that we are trying to go forward, we can delay possible suits. But, he cautioned, we should not get into too big a rush -- to develop a complete plan. He felt the pressure to get a plan done in too short a time forced the committee to try to do too much too soon.

While Alzola noted some committee members felt overwhelmed with the challenge, Dessa Gunning said she felt the citizens committee had accomplished the task set before it. She pointed out the committee chose to take advantage of all the hard work that previous committees had already done -- modifying the design plan to make it less costly and more attractive to the voters. The committee felt a bond issue was the best means of paying for the proposal after investigating other alternatives. She was disappointed to hear the commissioners' decision to table the bond issue, sending it back to the committee.