Garfield County commissioners approve proposed site for new jail

ENID, Okla. (AP) _ The Garfield County Board of Commissioners has endorsed a site as the possible future home of the much-delayed new county jail. <br><br>The commission voted for the proposal at Tuesday's

Wednesday, October 16th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

ENID, Okla. (AP) _ The Garfield County Board of Commissioners has endorsed a site as the possible future home of the much-delayed new county jail.

The commission voted for the proposal at Tuesday's regular weekly meeting. If voters approve a quarter-cent sales tax on Nov. 5, the new jail will be built on a piece of land owned by the city of Enid.

``We settled on it a long time ago but we never did officially go on record,'' Commissioner Wendell Vencl said.

County and Enid city officials have disagreed over the jail project for several years. The dispute spilled over into the ballot box when voters rejected a sales tax proposal for the new facility in March.

County officials have been wanting to replace the overcrowded, 76-bed lockup, which as been cited repeatedly for health and safety violations.

The Oklahoma Attorney General's Office sued the county last year to close the jail. A group of inmates has filed a class action lawsuit against officials, too.

One of the conflicts between the county and the city was the scope of the project and its high price tag. The latest plan would raise the county sales tax by a quarter-cent for 15 years.

Proceeds would fund a 198-bed jail slated to cost about $8.4 million. The rest would be used for jail operations, debt payments and professional fees.

Vencl said county officials chose the city-owned site because there are no acquisition costs to pay. City officials are expected to donate the land to the county.

Some have objected to the proposed site's proximity to some athletic fields and a large nursing home complex, but county officials say the new jail will be secure.

There also was concern because the proposed site was once used as a landfill. County crews drilled several test holes Sept. 20 and turned up nothing to indicate any problems, officials said.

Vencl also officials are confident there won't be any problems with the site.