GARFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio — After years of debate, a new Cuyahoga County jail is one step closer to reality. A newly approved site for the project in Garfield Heights is drawing mixed reactions from county leaders and community groups.
READ MORE: Cuyahoga County Council approves Garfield Heights site for new jail
“The critical thing is we need a new jail. Otherwise, we have to make a substantial investment in the current facility. It’s not practical. It’s not a good use of taxpayer dollars,” said Mike Dever, the Director of Public Works for Cuyahoga County.
The push for a new jail goes back years. News 5 previously detailed a 2018 U.S. Marshals report that concluded the current facility’s overcrowding, understaffing and inhumane conditions made it one of the worst jails in the country.
“The conditions are bad, they’re really bad. They don’t have anything that they need down here; they don’t get the help that they need down here,” said Sharica Townsend, whose brother is currently incarcerated at the downtown jail.
She said she’d like to see a new facility, but concerns over accessibility make her hesitant to support a Garfield Heights site approved by Cuyahoga County Council Tuesday evening.
“They don’t have many buses that go out there as it is. So it would be a big wait, and it would be jumping through a lot of hoops just to get over there,” she said.
Other county leaders expressed concerns about the site being out of the way for not only visiting families but also law enforcement, who may need to take officers off the road to transport prisoners further than the current jail.
Dever explained the county is developing transportation plans with the Greater Cleveland RTA, and he said the Garfield Heights location is central within the entire county.
“There were some sites throughout the city of Cleveland, but they had challenging environmental issues with them that was going to take time and money. We believe this is in an ideal location,” he said.
The 72-acre vacant property between Transportation Blvd and Granger Rd was favored over other options for the lack of cleanup required to begin construction and for the availability of land to build a larger complex.
“We look at this as a central services campus, where there’s opportunities to give ancillary services to the jail and other county functions,” Dever said.
He explained proposals for the new campus include a diversion center and wrap-around services for mental health and job training. Including the $38.7 million cost of acquiring the land, the entire project budget is about $750 million.
Some community groups think the money could be better spent elsewhere and told News 5 they were disappointed with a lack of community input throughout the process.
“Folks would like to see more affordable housing in their community; they would like to see more quality education for their children. We’re not hearing anyone saying that they want to spend the next 40 years paying for a 750 million dollar jail,” said LaTonya Goldsby, the President of Black Lives Matter Cleveland, which is a member organization of the Cuyahoga County Jail Coalition.
The county is still exploring funding sources for the project. Some proponents say it’s an investment in the county’s future.
Others who are reluctant about the investment said they agree something needs to be done to address the current jail.
“We need it. We need it if even just for the safety of them,” Townsend said about the jail population.
The county plans to break ground on the facility in Garfield Heights by the fall of 2024. Construction is expected to wrap up in three years.
