A ground-breaking ceremony was held today (Monday) to officially start construction of the new Greene County Jail. Greene County Sheriff’s Office staff and the Greene County Board of Supervisors all agree that this project was much needed and are thankful to finally see it become a reality. Greene County Sheriff Jack Williams says a lot of work has been put into planning for this project, from two bond referendums to scaling back the project to fit within a budget that made the supervisors and the community comfortable.
The new jail will be a separate building located south of the current Greene County Law Enforcement Center. It will expand from an eight-bed jail to a 20-bed jail with the capability to house up to 50 inmates. Alternates to the building include a heated Sally Port for the department’s vehicles and two additional cells, which now meet requirements to hold federal prisoners. Williams says he has been trying to build this new facility for eight years and is excited to see its completion by November 2026.
The project bid came in at $11,367,000, which is roughly a million dollars over the voter-approved bond. The supervisors have approved using $2.1 million of surplus funds, which will be repaid through interest accumulated through investments and an increase to the tax levies to make up for the balance not covered by the bond. Levy increases are continuing to be discussed by the Greene County Board of Supervisors and will be presented with two public hearings before finalizing the fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget.
