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Ocean County Jail Expansion Plans Move Forward
OCEAN COUNTY - Plans to expand the Ocean County Jail to accommodate a growing inmate population and to provide an upgraded facility with improved security are moving forward.
The Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders was updated on the expansion and renovation plans, which calls for 157,000 square feet of additions and alterations at the Ocean County Justice Complex located on Hooper Avenue.
"This expansion is not something we arbitrarily decided to undertake," said Freeholder John P. Kelly, who serves as Director of Law and Public Safety. "This has been discussed and studied for more than two years. It's really a matter of maintaining public safety that has brought us here today."
The presentation to the board was made by Jack A. King and Allan R. Johnson, principals in the architectural engineering firm of Fletcher Thompson. The proposed expansion would include the construction of new space at the rear of the Justice Complex and a twostory addition on the south side of the existing building. The Ocean County Jail currently is located on the fourth and fifth floors of the Justice Complex.
The Board of Freeholders was presented the findings of a needs assessment last year, which outlined the factors for increasing the jail space.
"The study was the first step in planning for a new jail," Kelly said.
According to the study, since 1985 when the Board of Freeholders opened the jail atop the Ocean County Justice Complex, the county's population has increased by almost 200,000 people. Since that time period, new mandatory sentencing laws have gone into effect resulting in longer jail terms; municipalities have employed more police officers resulting in an increase in patrols and arrests.
The combination of both increasing admissions at the Ocean County Jail and increased average length of stay has created a higher average daily population at the jail according to the study done by Carter Goble Associates, Inc. The current average population at the facility, according to the study, now exceeds 400 inmates and on some days more than 500.
Under the current proposal, the county plans to add space for an additional 400 beds, which would increase the jail capacity to 680 beds.
"An expansion of the facility is needed
to meet the current and future needs of the
Ocean County Jail population," Kelly said. "The jail population today is 512, yesterday it was 499. The numbers tell the story.
"Because of the growing numbers, we cannot separate inmates which creates security and safety problems in particular for our corrections officers," Kelly said. "The expansion will address all those concerns and will result in a safer facility for our officers and the public at large."
This expansion is designed to meet the needs of the county's inmate housing requirements until 2025 and all inmate areas would continue to be within a maximum-security perimeter.
Kelly said he has taken steps that insure the need of the expansion. "We have developed programs that serve as alternatives to incarceration including the successful Drug Court, day reporting programs and the elimination of housing state prisoners," Kelly said. "But now the time has come to expand this facility and to address the overcrowding population that already exists."
Kelly noted that the estimated construction cost of the jail expansion proposal is $49 million.
With the alterations, support functions that already exist including intake areas, laundry facilities and the medical unit will be improved.
"We are building this facility for the future," said Freeholder John C. Bartlett Jr., who serves as liaison to the county's Finance Department. "We are not building this just to meet the needs of today."
The county's financial advisor, earlier this year, has said the county will have no problem in financing this project based on the county's ongoing long-term planning and conservative fiscal practices.
"We are in the best financial position possible
to take on a project like this," Bartlett said. "Our ongoing financial practices will allow us to handle this expense without any negative affect on our taxpayers."
In order to move the plans forward, the county expects to award a contract to Fletcher Thompson Architecture Engineering, LLC of East Brunswick to begin the design and permit approval phase of the project. The freeholders were expected to award a $4 million contract during the board's regular meeting. The freeholder board earlier this year adopted an ordinance appropriating $2.5 million for the start of this work.
The design and permit approval phase is expected to take about 12 months to complete while the actual construction will take about 30 months. The entire project including the bidding and award of the work is expected to take about 45 months to complete.
"This project will be constructed with the least interruption to the current court and jail system," noted Freeholder Director Gerry P. Little. "And, once completed, it will serve the county into the future."
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