Monroe County has approved funding for a contractor to oversee the transition to a new county jail.
Last week, commissioners added $330,000 for a jail transition director to their plans for spending American Rescue Plan Act dollars, or federal COVID-19 relief funds.
That followed an appropriation from the county council the same week.
The transition director will work with the sheriff’s office and the firm designing a new jail to determine what’s needed in the facility.
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That person will make about $100,000 annually over three years, and the remaining $30,000 will pay for general liability insurance, according to County Attorney Jeff Cockerill.
Sheriff Ruben Marté and the commissioners initially disagreed over whether the transition director should be full-time and someone already working for the sheriff.
Marté and his staff said they wanted the transition director to be full-time and contracted from outside to avoid impeding the sheriff’s ability to maintain the current jail.
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The commissioners, on the other hand, said the transition director should start as part-time and be hired internally, based on training they attended earlier this year and advice by the National Institute of Corrections.
But the commissioners conceded last week despite their position remaining unchanged.
Cockerill said the hire will be up to Marté.
County Legal is drafting the contract and considering input from the sheriff’s office, commissioners and county council.
The county has not yet selected a site for a new jail.
