Two members of the Carroll County Board of Supervisors, Gene Meiners and Rich Ruggles, spent the evening at the Carroll County Courthouse Tuesday, waiting for election results to come in. Meiners says he is “elated” with the passing of Public Measure A, an $8.95 bond referendum for the construction of a new jail. It passed by the unofficial total of 62.34 percent. As Election Day drew closer and Meiners spoke with more and more residents, he began to see this possibility as a reality.
Meiners says to get 60 percent is a big hurdle and he is overjoyed they hit it on the first try. He wants to thank the other supervisors, the Yes Committee to Improve Public Safety and all the other residents who helped educate and inform the voters prior to the election. He also wanted to thank one other person, who was instrumental in the positive outcome.
Ruggles echoed Meiners’ sentiment, thanking Sheriff Pingrey and the entire Sheriff’s Department for their excellent work in showing the public the need for a new jail. Pingrey thanked the entire county and says he could not have picked a better place to grow up, work and raise a family. “My staff and myself take your public safety very seriously,” Pingrey adds. “Your vote today shows you have put your faith in the Carroll County Board of Supervisors and the Sheriff’s Office. We would sincerely like to thank each and every citizen in this great county.” Meiners and Ruggles agree.
Ruggles admits to being nervous going into the final voting push on Tuesday.
The biggest point of contention with the referendum was the proposed location. Ruggles says the voters were smart and understood that the most economically feasible and safest option was proposed to them in this public measure. The supervisors will now be working closely with Shive Hattery, the architecture firm hired by the county, and begin the process of locating a project manager. Meiners adds that when they entered into this effort, they were told it would be about five years before they would be able to turn a key on the jail. They have spent over two and a half years on the project so far, and he is predicting it will be around another two years before the jail is open and ready for use.
