Dear Editor,

People have been asking me how the Public Safety Center/Jail Complex pro…

By Mike Roe

Dear Editor,

People have been asking me how the Public Safety Center/Jail Complex project is progressing. In summation, things are not good. We are well on the road to another deservedly failed proposal. We are again plagued with a 4.5 million dollar proposal, at the cost of tearing down the old structure. And again, there are no other reasonable alternative plans being solicited for consideration. It appears that the warning given by the taxpayers in August of last year when the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) issue was soundly defeated has been forgotten already except for one item. At least we were heard on one issue, which was to keep the jail right where it is presently located. But, we apparently were not heard on any other issues. Below may be some of the reasons why the taxpayer is again being ignored.

1) It was reported that the jail committee selected this architect. It was not reported that they had no choice. We are at a HUGE disadvantage regarding this project in that our county administration has locked us into an exclusive contract with the present architect/consultant. Therefore, we can NOT get competitive design bids, proposals, cost estimates or opinions from anyone else. THIS ARCHITECT ALONE IS DICTATING WHAT WE CAN OR CAN NOT DO! It gets worse: he has personal interest in the high cost of this project. His earnings from this job are based on the cost of the building. So, the more he can convince us to pay in building costs, the more money he stands to make. The architect and construction manager’s incomes from OUR bloated complex costs will be APPROXIMATELY ONE HALF MILLION DOLLARS!

It may be said that architects are paid based on a percentage of the cost of the project. However, in most cases, which should be required when spending public funds, an architect is finally chosen after a competitive bid process where more than one person has an opportunity to design and bid for a job. There was no bidding process for our jail complex. He was asked to allow other proposals and input but immediately flatly refused. Perhaps his contract should be canceled, or allowed to expire, and other interested parties should be allowed to design and bid this job as any other business ventures normally do.

2) The present architect has said that the existing structure needs to be torn down to build new, (adding even more cost, therefore, income to him) because, for example, it wouldn’t be acceptable to the fire inspectors. I called the State Fire Marshall’s Office in Des Moines myself. The State Fire Marshall’s office told me that a building over the present structure would be perfectly acceptable, and was “a good idea”. It was obvious that this was not good news to the current administration by the looks on their faces when I reported on this information.

3) The architect keeps saying that, yes the proposal is expensive, but it is only 20% of the cost of operating the complex over 20 years. His saying that over and over again seems to lull some folks into thinking that the end (getting the new complex) is justified by the costs, no matter how high they are. I DO NOT AGREE. THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS ARE IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW!! Any monies saved now can be used for other projects which will surely come along. Also of note, with these figures, he is saying that it will cost us 25 million dollars to operate this complex for the next 20 years. JUST THIS REASON ALONE SAYS THAT WE NEED A LESS EXPENSIVE BUILDING SO WE CAN AFFORD TO OPERATE IT. Of note, one permanent cost factor that can be eliminated is the kitchen. Adding a kitchen will only increase, permanently, the operational costs of the jail.

4) The Needs Committee members are working hard to try and meet the needs of our public safety. However, they are working with handcuffs and shackles on. They can only work with the limited information that the architect and administration is allowing them to have and are being led down a pre-determined path by the administration, the architect, or both. They are being forced, by lack of input and a strangling contract, to rubber stamp and accept the end (this new complex) justifying the means (the cost no matter how expensive or pompous).

In summary, we are worse off now than we were before. The issue of cost has been one stumbling block right from the very beginning, and has been made even more painful by a 4.5 million dollar design again. The stranglehold the architect has on us needs to be remedied. The current administration also needs to heed the warning of the last LOST vote of almost 80% rejection. If they don’t remedy their error and do something to allow other ideas, designs and bidding into these proceedings, these inflated costs are going to be just one of the reasons for the citizens to defeat this costly monster again. We do need to improve our safety center/jail, but THIS PROPOSAL IS TOO EXPENSIVE, AND THE CITIZENS, INCLUDING THIS ONE, WILL REJECT IT AGAIN!!

-Mike Roe