Law & Justice Center/Courthouse Expansion Project
Frequently Asked Questions
Overall Project |
| What will this cost me? If you look at your REAL Property Tax Statement issued by the Madison County Treasurer, take the number listed as "taxable value" and multiply that number by 0.019, you will see the actual cost per year through the life of the bond to you and your household. This amount will cover costs of the project including interest and increased operating expenes. Please click here to see an example. |
| How did you come up with $10 million? What, specifically, is included in the price? The price has been calculated in 2 Phases - $8.5 million for the new construction of the Law & Justice Center and $1.5 million for the Courthouse Addition. Click here to review the Cost Analysis. |
| Why do a mail-out ballot-how will that work? Your elected Clerk & Recorder has determined that a mail-out ballot is the appropriate and optimum process for this election issue. On September 18th, the county will mail out the official ballots for this bond measure. You will have until October 9th to either drop off, or mail in your ballot with your vote. To review the pros & cons of voting by mail, please click here. Click here to see a cost breakdown of voting by mail vs. traditional poll voting for Madison County. To see the timetable for the bond election, click here. |
| Was the Madison County Planning Board involved? In 2001, Madison County adopted a Capital Improvements Plan which was prepared by the Planning Office and reviewed by the Planning Board. It identified, among other things, the need for a new jail (Appendix B, page 6 - copy on file). |
| Why wasn’t the expansion included at the same time the courthouse went through its recent renovation? The Courthouse renovation was funded by a specific grant for historic preservation called "Save America's Treasures". Expansion was not included in the terms of that project. |
| What offices/services are currently located in other buildings? The Weed Department, Public Health Services and Superintendent of Schools are all located in the old schoolhouse, Emergency Management is located in a shed behind the Courthouse, and the County Attorney, Planning Department, Sanitarian, GIS/IT and Grant writing offices are all located in the old Title Co. building, known as the Pankey building. Additional rent and utility costs for these offices cost the taxpayers $23,490/year. |
Law & Justice Center |
| What offices/services will belocated in the new facility? All Justice Court services including a courtroom and separate offices for the Justice of the Peace and Compliance Officer, all District Court Services including a courtroom, jury room, and secure Judges Chambers, Youth Probation, Victim Advocacy, County Attorney offices, Emergency Operations, Dispatch/9-1-1, and all Law Enforcement operations including an updated and expanded county jail. Please click here to see an outline of "who goes where". Click here to see floor plans for the entire project. August 2007 updated L&J Center plans. |
| How will it affect property values for the surrounding neighborhood? According to local appraisers, it would be difficult to judge the effect of new municipal facilities on surrounding land values in Virginia City. This building has been designed to compliment the visual landscape-it is unique in its features. Some concerns stated by opponents of the project have centered around law enforcement traffic to the building. In the proposed Law & Justice Center, Sheriff Department Officers and Staff will enter the building from the back; inmates taken to the building will be driven into a secure and enclosed "sally port", and inmates of the detention center will have no outdoor activities and thus, will not be visible to the public. For these reasons, the new building is not expected to negatively impact to the surrounding neighborhood. |
| Why does the new facility have to be built in Virginia City? Virginia City is the county seat. It has been determined that housing all county services within two buildings is the best and most fiscally responsible choice. As well, state statute requires that certain elected county officials must maintain their offices in the county seat, such as the Sheriff and Justice of the Peace. While it wouldn't be impossible to build a separate county jail in another location, it has been decided that it would be prohibitive for several reasons. Madison County Commissioners, Staff, Project Architects & Engineers looked at various options for building the county jail by itself somewhere else. It was determined that building the detention center in a different location did not resolve the issue of transporting inmates to and from court appearances. Using officer resources to transport people by vehicle from a separate jail facility to court is expensive and presents a safety risk. In a facility designed to house both services, detainees can be escorted a short distance, through secure corridors. Following are sections of Montana Code Annotated that make reference to the locations of county services and the duties of the Sheriff: County Offices 7-4-2211; Duties of Sheriff 7-32-2121(7); and Establishing detention center -- detention center contract -- regional detention center 7-32-2201. |
| Why build a jail on Virginia City's main street Wallace Street is the main traffic corridor in Virginia City and that fact was given sincere consideration when the location for the new facility was chosen. Some warned that the presence of a building that houses a jail on the main street in Virginia City will be detrimental to the overall "feel" of the town. Others argued that Virginia City has had a jail on main street for decades (located in the basement of the Courthouse). Many are of the opinion that the current Sheriff's office is probably more visible to pedestrians on Wallace Street now than it will be in the new facility. The proposed Law & Justice Center will house 7 different county services. The county jail is one component of one department and will be located in the basement of the building. Visitors to Virginia City may be unaware of the fact that the building houses a jail. Madison County Commissioners, Staff, Project Architects & Engineers reviewed and discussed the possibilties of locating the Law & Justice Center building on other sites in and around Virginia City. Factors considered included: proximity to water and sewer, additional building costs, and the fact that Madison County already owned the land across from the Courthouse. After review of all factors, the proposed site was selected as the optimal location. Please click here to see the Project History and Design Considerations. |
| Why have a jail at all ? All counties have a social responsibility to manage a safe, well-run detention center. Madison County is no exception. Our county jail serves the goal of community safety and performs 4 basic functions:
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| What will the lighting be like-will it look like a prison? Prisons have bright lights and razor wire fences. There will be no need for either. Site lighting for the proposed Law & Justice Center will be needed for safety, security, and handicapped access requirements, but will be historic and understated in design. In fact, lighting for the facility will be more aesthetically pleasing and more efficient than the existing "cobra head" light fixtures that presently light most of Virginia City. All of the proposed new light fixtures will use energy efficient metal halide bulbs in lieu of the off-colored mercury or high-pressure sodium bulbs. To eliminate glare and night sky light pollution, "dark sky" semi cut off shields will be installed in the vandal resistant globes to limit the amount of light contributed above the horizontal plane to the sky above. Click here to see an example of proposed light fixture designs. |
| Will there be convicted felons in the Madison County jail ? If someone in Madison County is charged with a felony crime, they will be processed here, and will stay in the county jail awaiting trial. Once they have been convicted and sentenced, they will be transferred to the state prison system. The Madison County Sheriff's Office has decided that the jail will not house inmates from other counties or states serving sentences for felony crimes. |
| Will prisoners from other states and counties be housed in the jail ? The Madison County Sheriff's Department reserves the right to make limited bed space available to other counties for a fee under strict guidelines to assist other counties that find themselves unable to house inmates due to overcrowding or inadequate facilities. The Sheriff's Office reserves that option as a means for fiscal prudence and as a reciprocal gesture for the assistance that other counties have given us over the years. It is important to note that inmates are often transferred between neighboring facilities under certain circumstances, and that cooperation between counties will continue. The general guidelines under which Madison County will accept inmate transfers are as follows:
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| Will inmates from other counties be released in Virginia City?
No. The Madison County Sheriff's Office will require that anyone convicted of a crime and required to serve a sentence will be processed and released in the county in which they were convicted. |
| Why do we need so many beds - does Madison County have that many criminals? While the county has averaged 5 inmates/day thus far in 2007, average calculations do not accurately reflect space requirements in this circumstance. The size of the facility must accommodate maximum need plus extra room for unanticipated circumstances. Jails are required to manage a diverse population. Inmates of both sexes must be safely separated. Many people are in physical or mental crisis when they are brought to the jail. Detention officers must be able to separate, evaluate and monitor inmates effectively with adequate, secure space. With the need for flexibility in inmate management, jails at 80% capacity are considered "full". (source: National Institue of Corrections - http://www.nicic.org/Library/018696.) Understanding the needs for the new facility today, and predicting the needs of the future has been challenging. After careful consideration and review of current arrest statistics, County Commissioners and Sheriff's Department Staff have confirmed that Madison County has an immediate need for 15-18 beds. To accommodate current needs and future growth, the new facility is slated to accommodate 21 beds and 3 processing cells. |
| How will the detention center provide meals for the prisoners? A kitchen has been included in the floor plans which will be used for basic food preparation and storage. Meals will be provided through a combination of in-house preparation of food and meals purchased from other businesses in Madison County. |
| What is the operating budget for the proposed detention center? The county jail budget for the new facility will differ from the department's current budget - mostly in the category of staffing. It will cost more to staff the new detention center, however, all costs associated with transporting inmates to other facilities and paying for their housing will disappear. Please click here to review the Public Safety budget data. |
| How will the prospect of a regional facility affect Madison County? While a regional facility has been discussed by officials in Southwest Montana, it is not seen as a viable replacement for our county jail needs. The discussion of a regional facility was precipitated primarily by the problem of over-crowding in the Gallatin County jail. All indicators suggest that Bozeman's need will exceed the capacity of a new facility long before Madison County will have a chance to make use of it. Having access to a regional facility may lessen the burden of providing housing for detainees serving long-term sentences, but seems impractical for anything less for the same reasons we face in our current situation regarding the cost and transportation of inmates. |
| What about water supply and sewer capacity? Virginia City water is restricted in the summer, where will all the additional water come from ? Virginia City residents have virtually unlimited and non-metered use of water throughout the year. There is an exception, however, during mid-July through August when tourism and water use for irrigation are both at peak levels. At that point, residents are asked to reduce irrigation. Typically, they are asked to only water every other day and to avoid watering during the height of the day. Engineering reports conducted for this project have concluded that Virginia City has enough water collected via 2 springs and stored in a 500K gallon storage tank to supply both its residents and the new facility. Engineers for the project also evaluated the water supply from a fire suppression standpoint and have determined that Virginia City has enough water to both protect its fragile resources and support the proposed facility. The town's sewer system has been evaluated as well, and engineering studies have concluded that the proposed L&J Center will present a manageable impact to the town's sewer system. To review the Iinfrastructure Engineering Study, please click here. To further monitor the impact of the facility, the L&J Center's water usage will be metered. |
| Will there be any impact to Virginia City's tourism business and historical integrity? Business Owners in Virginia City have varying opinions on this issue. Some believe that there will be a negative impact, yet others predict that tourism will not be affected by the presence of the new building. The building has been designed to complimenting the town's visual landscape and commercial district. |
If you have any questions that have not been addressed in this document, please email your question to madco@madison.mt.gov or call: 1.800.920.7905, and someone will respond as soon as possible.
Thank you for your time and attention.
