JPs Hear Proposed Animal Shelter, Jail Expansion Plans
Most of the Courts & Public Safety Committee’s meeting on September 12 was spent on updates about two important County issues, the proposed animal shelter and a long-awaited jail expansion project:
Animal Shelter
Chair JP Maree Coats (R, Dist. 2) reported that the County has two qualified bids for the proposed animal shelter project as County Administrator Randy Higgins displayed a conceptual floor plan and drawing of the front of the proposed shelter dated May 4, 2023 (large, detailed floor plan at bottom).
Higgins said JPs should add “a 20% soft cost” of about $220,000 to the remodel bids for the Springhill flea market. Those “soft costs” would include furnishing the building with vet equipment, kennels, desk, etc, he explained.
Coats reported Hays Construction bid $1,217,121 and NBMC placed a bid of $1,166,000, making the total project cost $1.4 to $1.5 million. It’s estimated the project would take about 180 days to complete.
The plan is to use $1.5 million of the the County’s unencumbered ARP funds to remodel/build at Springhill, then take shelter operating costs from the voluntary animal tax fund that currently has enough to pay for about two to three years’ estimated expenses. No plan has been proposed for paying longer-term operational expenses.
As was the case when the building purchase was first approved, much of the discussion focused on operational costs, with JP John Allison (R, Dist. 3) saying, “We need the operating costs to come from the voluntary (animal shelter) tax.” He added, “I would really like to see the community step up and pay for the operating costs … I will not vote to increase taxes on the Faulkner County taxpayers to pay to operate the shelter.”
Coats, who pointed out she “served on the advisory Committee under Judge (Jim) Baker with the animal shelter” agreed, commenting on the scaled-back animal shelter plans:
Is this perfection and what so many animal advocates have wanted for years? Absolutely not … but it is progress and that what we’re needing. We really would like to see progress over perfection. We have to start somewhere; we have to crawl before we can walk.
After Allison and Coats implored residents to pay into the voluntary “animal fund,” JPs Andy Shock (R, Dist. 10) and Jake Moss (R, Dist. 13) “echoed” Allison and Coats’ position, prompting County Judge Allen Dodson to add,
I will veto any request for funding from County General for operations for the future.
JP Kris Kendrick (R, Dist. 9) asked how much has been spent for architect work and plans so far; Higgins replied that $70,000 spent so far has been paid from the Judge’s office budget (not the animal shelter tax fund).
Entire discussion:
Jail Expansion Project
The last topic of the meeting was an update from Dodson on plans being discussed for the long-awaited jail expansion, “the largest capital expenditure project in Faulkner County history,” which seems to be in a conceptual phase, with no real floor plans or architect drawings in place.
Dodson is recommending a 192-bed new spoke-and-hub facility (four spokes with 64 beds each; build three spokes or 192 beds in phase 1) behind the Justice Bldg. for a proposed estimated cost of $100,000/bed or $19.2 million.
Explaining that a spoke-and-hub setup requires fewer onsite personnel than the existing Unit 1 facility that houses violent detainees, Dodson said the County could afford the $19.2 million price tag this way:
- $5 million from the $10 million in the County’s unencumbered ARP funds
- $5 million financed via Amendment 78 for five years (payments can be made from the annual revenue going into the Capital Improvement Fund; the Quorum Court routinely sets aside $1 million/year from County General Revenue) and
- $5 million Dodson says will be accumulated at the end of 2023 in the Capital Improvement Fund
To cover the remaining $4.2 million, he foresees using
- $300,000 from restricted ARP funds approved to use for HVAC per ARP restrictions
- $700,000 (all unspent CARES Act funds)
- $1 million from this year’s set-aside to the Capital Improvement Fund (“spend it last,” so it accrues interest until spent)
- $1 million from next year’s set-aside (Dodson doesn’t anticipate any other reason to spend the $1 million annual set-aside in the Capital Improvement Fund in 2024 or 2025)
- plus some money Dodson anticipates will be remaining from his previously approved set-asides from unencumbered ARP money. Dodson is told the County will not spend the entire $1 million he asked for 911 upgrades. The $1 million for Arkansas River levee work to help prevent future flooding may not be needed because Dodson now predicts federal funds will come through for assistance with levee studies/necessary construction.
Sheriff Tim Ryals explained how the constant overcrowding in Unit 1 is creating constant problems. He answered questions from Allison about safety issues/concerns and JP Tyler Pearson (D, Dist. 7) about future capacity and unplanned-for expenses if future overcrowding should occur in the new jail.
If Arkansas gets its new planned prison facilities online over the next five years so the County does not need to accommodate backed up inmate housing for the state Department of Correction, Dodson says he prefers that phase 2 of the jail expansion project would move juvenile detention plus the Sheriff’s Office over to the new facility and “raze Unit 1. … I think that’s something we ought to look at in the future,” he added.
Entire discussion:
Proposed animal shelter floor plan:
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Open in new tab “Bid tabulation” from Rik Sowell (architect):
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Videos edited from original video on Faulkner County’s YouTube channel.)
Visit Faulkner County Reports on YouTube for more videos and video excerpts from this and other County meetings and events.
