Kootenai County commissioners commit $9.9 million to jail, sheriff’s office expansion
COEUR d’ALENE — Kootenai County commissioners have agreed to allocate nearly $10 million to fund capital projects for the sheriff’s office, while plans for the in-progress Justice Building expansion remain up in the air.
Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to set aside $9 million to complete two unfinished dormitory pods at the county jail, as well as $950,000 to fund the expansion of the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office into a county-owned Hayden facility. Money for both projects will come from the county’s fund balance.
The county broke ground in September on a 60,000-square-foot expansion to the Justice Building, which will add three courtrooms and facilities for the Sheriff’s Office, district court employees, prosecutors and other county staff. But last week, Commissioner Bruce Mattare called for the board to reevaluate the scope of the project amid rising costs.
“Now more than ever, I think the county needs to be more fiscally conservative with its money,” Mattare said Tuesday.
The board will hold a public hearing 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 16, to discuss all three capital projects. The public will have the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback.
“The short notice of this public hearing is in an effort to avoid costs from delaying the Justice Center project,” said a news release issued Tuesday by the county. “However, the (commissioners) felt it was prudent to seek public feedback before proceeding with phase 2 of the Justice Center expansion as costs continue to rise.”
In 2022, the Justice Building expansion was estimated to cost around $22 million. Since then, the cost has grown to $37.8 million.
Last year, commissioners allocated $24 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the expansion, at the recommendation of the Kootenai County ARPA Task Force. About $782,000 from the Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund will also go toward the project, as well as about $769,000 in county funds. That leaves a $10.4 million shortfall.
The county has identified about $9.6 million in potential funding sources, which would be reallocated from different county funds. For example, the IT department has reportedly agreed to reallocate about $745,000 from its assigned fund balance for fiscal year 2024 to go toward the expansion.
Even so, $867,658 needed for the project remains unfunded.
Mattare floated the possibility last week the county might scrap plans for a planned fourth floor as a cost-saving measure.
Though he said Tuesday it’s not his intention or desire to remove the floor, which is meant to house the Kootenai County Prosecutor’s Office, he proposed that Bouten Construction determine how much money would be saved by doing so.
Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney Stan Mortensen pushed back on the idea. He urged the board to consider all possible cost-saving measures, not only the one that impacts his department.
“Gutting my floor would devastate my office,” Mortensen told commissioners Tuesday. “I can’t continue to exist and do justice to the citizens of this community under current living conditions.”
Mattare said his aim is not to gut the prosecutor’s office, but rather to “avoid gutting (the county’s) savings.”
Commissioner Leslie Duncan said it’s inaccurate to frame the Justice Center expansion as depleting the county’s savings.
“That’s not really true if we have two and a half months of reserves,” she said. “We are using the fund balance that has been accumulated by unanticipated revenue. This money is set aside for capital projects.”
