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A state board that administers grants to counties for jail construction projects voted Thursday to approve $70 million for Contra Costa County’s planned expansion of Richmond’s West County Detention Facility.
The California Board of State and Community Corrections awarded the grant to Contra Costa County only after hearing from a string of county residents who had traveled to Sacramento to voice opposition to the project.
The roughly 20 speakers denounced the plan, in part, because they feel that the money would be better spent on mental health and other services outside of the county’s jail system.
Opponents of the project also decry the sheriff’s office relationship with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
ICE pays the sheriff’s office to hold roughly 200 detainees per day, which produces about $6 million in gross revenue annually for the county and nets about $3 million, according to the sheriff’s office.
While state law prevents counties from leasing beds to outside agencies after BSCC awards a grant for a jail expansion project, the Richmond project — dubbed the West County Reentry, Treatment, and Housing Facility — will result in more than 400 inmates from the old jail in Martinez moving to a new building within the West County Detention Facility.
Since the project won’t actually increase the number of beds in the county’s jail system, the sheriff’s contract with ICE won’t be affected.
The project will also result in 31,500 square feet of programming space to expand treatment and rehabilitation programs, including mental health services, at the Richmond jail.
The speakers at Thursday’s hearing were praised as “passionate, powerful, (and) authentic” by BSCC board member Leticia Perez, a Kern County supervisor.
She and other board members expressed frustration that the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors didn’t seem to be taking citizens’ complaints about the Richmond project into consideration.
“I really hope you do something about those elected leaders who aren’t listening to you,” said board member Scott Budnick.
Still, the board voted to approve the grant money because it is legally bound to evaluate jail construction projects based on several criteria, not including community support or the lack of it.
The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 in February to approve the project, with Supervisor John Gioia casting the sole dissenting vote.
The county will kick in $25 million of general fund money for the project and the board of supervisors is expected to vote on allocating that money at its June 20 meeting, according to county spokeswoman Betsy Burkhart.
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We spend $Billions on Prisons and Wars.
It would be great if our country would invest in free Community College Education.
So sad the our elected officials continue to make the same mistakes over and over again. Building more detentions facilities is like putting a Band-Aid over a bruise. Unless we address how the bruise happened we will keep needing more Band-Aids. It’s amazing the lack of understanding and compassion we have in this so called 1st world country were we continue to punish our sick and sweep them under the rug. Education and rehabilitation is where we need to be spending our efforts to prevent future tragic events from happening.
Thank you so much to those speakers who spoke on behalf of the public!
“The roughly 20 speakers denounced the plan, in part, because they feel that the money would be better spent on mental health and other services outside of the county’s jail system.”
Every time we lock someone up, we as a society lose a little freedom ourselves.
“The project will — also? — result in 31,500 square feet of programming space to expand treatment and rehabilitation programs, including mental health services, at the Richmond jail.”
I am having a tough time understanding exactly what this project will accomplish. 400 inmates will be moved – but there’s no net expansion of beds? And this programming/rehab space is an ‘also’ – to what?
Next, what happens to the space in the old facility that will be freed up?
And finally (though it’s tangential to this article) — where/how can I register ‘present’ and work in opposition to the ICE contract?
Help!
Finally we have some traction on this. Kudos to the County sups who voted for it. A crying need in our society. Too much leniency towards crooks and robbers. We have seen two brazen attacks at Costco. It is time to stop being soft on crime and illegal immigration. Put them away I say for good. See what the gangs of South America are doing to this country under our very noses. Thanks to ICE for rounding MS13 up in NYC. We need to keep our cities safe and unfortunately the hard core elements in West County are having an easy time. Thanks to COCO County Sheriff for making this happen.
Uh, Neb’r? Did you miss the part about “the project won’t actually increase the number of beds in the county’s jail system”? I htink that means there will be $70M spent on things like rehab and nicer quarters.
Is that what you have in mind? From the tenor of your post, I’d think you’d be tearing your hair.