Franklin County Dedicates New Detention Center

AAC FEATURE

The new Franklin County Detention Center is located on Airport Road in Ozark.

Franklin County dedicates new detention center

Franklin County’s new 104-bed, 17,500-square-foot detention center on Airport Road in Ozark is now open.

The county held a dedication ceremony for the new $8 million center on March 10 at the Franklin County Agriculture Extension Office, which was followed by a ribboncutting ceremony and open house at the jail next door.

Ceremony speakers included Franklin County Judge Rickey Bowman, Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, Sen. Gary Stubblefied, Rep. Sarah Capp and Franklin County Chief Deputy Travis Ball.

It’s “an investment in the future of this county and the entire state,” Rutledge said at the dedication ceremony.

The previous jail, according to Bowman, was built in 1974 and was determined by the 5th Judicial District Criminal Detention Facilities Review Committee not to meet minimum state jail standards.

One of the problems with the previous jail over the years was overcrowding. Bowman said the old jail’s capacity was around 35 inmates, but it had held more than 60 at times.

The new facility is also home to the sheriff’s office, a new dispatch center, and a morgue, among other features such as a control room that gives jailers the ability to monitor every cell from a single spot through windows and security cameras.

The new jail is safer for inmates and jailers, and it allows the sheriff’s office to segregate the different types of inmates in the facility as well, Bowman said.

The bid for the project was about $7.9 million. The funding was derived from two sales-and-use taxes that were approved by Franklin County voters during a special election in August 2017.

The taxes add up to a half-percent, with a three-eighths percent tax going toward repaying construction bonds, and the remainder going toward the operation and maintenance of the facility.

The one-eighth percent sales tax is shared with the county’s cities, Bowman said. The new taxes took effect Jan. 1, 2018. Above, top: Franklin County Judge Rickey Bowman talks with Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Arkansas Auditor of State Andrea Lea before the dedication ceremony. Above: A detention center officer monitors the jail from the facility’s new command center.

Above, left: Franklin County Judge Rickey Bowman welcomes detention center dedication attendees. He is joined by guest speakers Sen. Gary Stubblefield, Rep. Sarah Capp, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge and Gov. Asa Hutchinson. Above, right: Gov. Asa Hutchinson gives remarks on the opening of the new detention center.

Above, left: Franklin County Judge Rickey Bowman thanks all those who had a hand in helping make the detention center a reality. Above, right: State and local officials, leaders and law enforcement gather to cut a ceremonial ribbon in front of the detention center. Pictured are the detention center’s cells and common area, and kitchen.