By ROBERT WILSON
Knoxville News-Sentinel
MARYVILLE, Tenn. — Troubled economic times may be clanging the cell door closed on an expansion of the Blount County jail, at least for the time being.
The County Commission Budget Committee on Monday evening voted to move a proposed expansion of the jail to the full commission for consideration, but it goes there without a recommendation.
Mayor Jerry Cunningham, who chairs the budget panel, said the “timing is terrible” for the proposal because of the current global economic crisis, and he added that he cannot support the plan, which would call for about $7 million to build the addition.
The Blount County Detention Facility recently lost its state certification because of overcrowding, and the proposal to expand was designed to address that issue.
Cunningham said after the meeting that if the proposal is rejected by the commission, it will be up to Sheriff Jim Berrong to trim the number of inmates at the jail by cutting back on how many federal prisoners the jail can accept.
Blount County houses federal prisoners at a rate of $58.50 per day per inmate, which produces a significant revenue stream for the county. Trimming the number of prisoners the jail accepts will have an impact on the county budget, said Dave Bennett, county finance director.
But the times may demand holding back on the expansion, according to Cunningham, who already has clamped down a hiring freeze within the executive departments of the county. In addition, a school construction project also has been put on hold because bonds are proving difficult to sell in the tight economy.
The vote on holding up the expansion was unanimous, with the committee recommending the county seek estimates on building the structure without committing on a time frame to actually construct it.
Commissioner Kenneth Melton said it was “the wrong time,” and Commissioner Steve Samples added that this is a time to “be very conservative” on budgetary matters.
Copyright 2009 Knoxville News-Sentinel Co.