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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-09-07 Work Session Minutes Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 1 of 11 Deschutes County Board of Commissioners 1300 NW Wall St., Suite 200, Bend, OR 97701-1960 (541) 388-6570 - Fax (541) 385-3202 - www.deschutes.org MINUTES OF WORK SESSION DESCHUTES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2012 ___________________________ Present were Commissioners Tony DeBone, Alan Unger and Tammy Baney. Also present were Erik Kropp, Interim County Administrator; Susan Ross, Property & Facilities; Sheriff Larry Blanton and Darryl Nakahira, Sheriff’s Office; Mark Pilliod, County Counsel; Ken Hales, Community Corrections; David Inbody, Administration; David Givans, Internal Auditor; and several members of the public including media representative Erik Hidle of The Bulletin. Chair DeBone opened the meeting at 12:05 p.m. 1. Jail Expansion Discussion – Continued. Chair DeBone said that he visited the Juvenile and Jail facilities and spoke with Judge Forte. Commissioner Baney asked if the questions she had asked were addressed. Chair DeBone said he looked at the big picture; the OMNI work, the previous request of citizens to fund a $45 million expansion, when the committee to review this was formed and their task, and the priority of decisions with the goal of being sure there are adult jail beds available. This is an urgent situation. More analyzing means this can drag on. They are now talking about two solutions when he is comfortable with the first choice. Both will have pluses and minuses. He is leaning towards building, but the Juvenile issue needs to be addressed as well. Commissioner Baney stated the committee met after June, looking at adult jail capacity and needs. There were a series of options reviewed. She recalls the Juvenile detention facility was left showing adequate capacity; and it was felt that the County could cover the cost of debt service for the 144 beds added to the existing jail. There was not much talk about the detention center. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 2 of 11 Ken Hales stated that the goal and focus was to figure out a way to meet pressing jail needs, not analyze all future needs. The committee worked long and hard, and preferred long-term solution to address capital needs, operations and capacity was to build a new jail. They talked about how to finance it, and found there was a way. Conversations related to Juvenile were set aside, as the 144 bed addition was the preferred solution to the more urgent jail beds issue. Commissioner Baney said that she wanted to have a fully vetted conversation around the entire facility, and is not comfortable making a decision without doing that first. Chair DeBone stated that there has been a need for adult jail beds for a long time. Something needs to be done one way or another; this cannot be just kicked down the road any longer. They either need to go forward with this, or try to use the Juvenile space and move the juveniles somewhere else. It is time to make a decision. Commissioner Baney said that they need further discussion on the Juvenile issue, as to whether they rent beds for sentenced youth or do something else. Chair DeBone said he thought there had been an analysis of Juvenile issues. Commissioner Baney replied that there have been high-level discussions, but not having to do with operations. They may need to re duce the area down to one pod. Commissioner Unger stated that this came up fast. In terms of Juvenile, he needs more time to understand what this means and why the focus has changed. If they use the old facility downtown, this is going backwards. It is not the place to help move youth forward. This is bringing up a new thing. If they rent beds, will they have a Juvenile facility or use a different model for juvenile justice? In some ways, this is getting more complicated and is making it harder to move forward more quickly on the jail. The Sheriff needs help with this problem, and they cannot take a lot of time to work through even more. Commissioner Baney stated they have to separate economics from emotion. The emotional side is to use all operations on prevention. Youth incarceration is not the best way to go. They are investing more now than before. If the Juvenile facility will not work for the Sheriff, they do not have to solve renting or using the old facility for juveniles. They need a vision for detention. Should they invest $10 million in jail capacity? This does not help to solve the Juvenile issue. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 3 of 11 Commissioner Unger said he hears that, but understands that with Juvenile operations and detention, programs are incorporated into the detention costs. It is complicated to figure this out. The facility was built for a higher plan, with more kids in detention than we see today. So, it is a facility that is too big for what is needed now. However, it has other elements making it a facility that does well in addressing youth issues, such a Juvenile court. This makes it more expensive. There are a lot of parts making up where this is going. He wants to keep things simple; what is the best functioning jail expansion facility needed to help with jail overcrowding. There are costs to create a facility and operations. Having services in one building is more efficient and costs less for operations. Having more than one building means there are costs that are unknown. Commissioner Baney said she does not want to be foolish and say it will not be administratively difficult or expensive. The Sheriff says they are operating in two locations now: the work center and the adult jail. Those staff would move from one to the other and it would be cost neutral. Mr. Hales stated that it will take more staff to operate two facilities. As it is now, it is a wash. But adding the 144 beds is more efficient. This was identified more than once in sub-committee. Mr. Kropp recommended that questions be written down and answered one at a time. Commissioner Unger stated they would close the work center, but now they are looking at the Juvenile facility. They will not use the work center and it is a wash in that regard, but it leaves one unused. Either way they need more jail beds. Commissioner Baney said that they might hang their hat on the committee’s recommendations, but this part was not vetted in committee. Chair DeBone stated that he is not opposed to going down that path, but needs to know if it makes sense. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 4 of 11 Mark Pilliod explained that he spoke with Clackamas County legal counsel regarding a stay imposed by the Supreme Court ordering the county from proceeding with a bond issuance to fund their share of an extension of a light rail project. People who are opposed to the project have attempted to stop this effort and were not successful; however, the Supreme Court was asked to entertain a request for a stay and granted it. The parties are wondering what the message is. The argument of some is that these bonds require voter approval. He does not know if the parties have standing, or what the timeframe might be. For decades a whole range of municipal projects have been completed successfully without voter approval for each, through bonding. The agencies have statutory authority to make these decisions. An initiative petition is out for signatures, but he does not know that even if it makes the ballot, whether it matters. Mr. Kropp said capacity up to 1% of real market value is allowed. This County has plenty of bonding capacity. Commissioner Baney noted that there was criticism, and the bigger project was voted down, so the smaller version can be done now without a vote. She feels it is still a tax. Commissioner Unger asked if the sale of bonds is a tax or paid by property taxes. And are people critical of this or with the overall idea of incarceration. Mr. Kropp said it is hard to categorize what drives people. Some may have different reasons. It is not an additional property tax. Chair DeBone voiced concern about votes coming out close these days. He wanted to know if there is support to make this move and get the jail project in place. Commissioner Baney said this is an opportunity to talk about detention and youth. It has not been fully discussed. This kind of thing just does not happen on its own. Juvenile programs were an investment years ago. This opens up a broader conversation on how to utilize limited dollars and look at current operations. Mr. Hales revolutionized the department and it runs very lean. No one questions that. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 5 of 11 However, there are fixed costs even if they got to 24 youth. If twelve are from Deschutes County and twelve are from someplace else, it is still expensive. The question is what kind of services do they want to provide and where is this investment going. This is a non-mandated service paid out of general funds and contracts. Mr. Hales stated that the prior practice was declining numbers from outside the County. They changed the 30-day program and reduced fees from $150 to $110. They are now on track to get over $200,000 this year. They have filled the vacant beds with revenue-based beds. Traditionally there was a small number from outside the County until recently. The numbers have not been low for this area until recently. They need to look at system planning – the needs, services, and best way to meet them. First you satisfy your needs, but do not look at contracting out either. Then you would have no capacity of your own when it is needed. Commissioner Baney said that at a cost of $2.8 million, they need 61 paying beds to meet that. Then they would have to open other pods. She is not expecting to have zero costs. But the question is how much general fund investment is needed to house juveniles. The cost has been accep table in the past, but she cannot in good faith say it makes sense now. Mr. Hales indicated that part of the analysis should be what the typical cost is for juveniles. At capacity, it is $270 a day. $25 of that is internal service fees. Take that off and it is $245 at capacity. Those beds already have a cost attached, so why not discount them instead of not filling them at all. How many pods to operate and where do you draw the line are legitimate questions. The low numbers are a little bit atypical; there will be more than five or six a day when school starts. The old facility is substandard and cannot provide for programs. They will not be able to grow, as they would be capped at seven beds. It will not stay this way in the future when the population grows again. Commissioner Baney said that they have to detain them somewhere and somehow. The question is, do they contract out or expand the downtown facility. Maybe these are not preferred options. They need to look at this in detail before they do something else. What they have now is not financially sustainable. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 6 of 11 Mr. Hales objected to the notion that the cost of detention is illegitimate. It is efficient for its size. They cannot move to a substandard facility. They would save more money going to three pods than going downtown. The issue of right sizing is being mixed up with the long-term solution to jail issues. Commissioner Baney stated she cannot let go of this. She asked if the downtown facility can be added onto. Susan Ross said it could, technically the space is there but needs upgrading. Mr. Hales noted that it is cheaper to build that to re-do a substandard building. That is trying too hard to make things that are wrong right. Ms. Ross said that some facilities just have beds. The rule of thumb is 600 square feet per kid. With ten cells, 6,000 square feet, classroom and support space, it would be about $350 per square feet. This would be about $4.2 million in construction, plus overhead. The current downtown facility would have to be improved. They would have to enhance hardware and control mechanisms at a minimum. This would cost maybe $200,000 and take about four months. The current center is turn-key for adults, per Code. Mr. Hales stated that it would still be substandard. They would be carrying keys. This would be old generation facilities and problems that they designed their way out of. They can make anything work short -term, but it is a big gamble. Chair DeBone wants to know about the viability, principles and costs, and the programs and timing. The Judge said that the juvenile brain is different. They need a lot of help. They have a great facility now, but perhaps for the cost, change is needed. Commissioner Baney stated that if twenty beds are needed, that would be one thing. They may determine it is not the best thing to house juveniles here. It might be better to contract out Darryl Nakahira said that they see a declining trend for juveniles. However, the total number of cases in the Juvenile system comes into play. Either there is much less juvenile crime or a different process is being used. Mr. Hales said there are a number of admissions by the County and referrals being filed. There is a lot of activity but some do not end up in detention. Chair Debone noted that downsizing would mean they lose capability. They have pretrial and sentenced, so need to hold the kids somewhere. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 7 of 11 Mr. Hales asked if they are tied to the notion of not expanding the jail and move into Juvenile instead. Commissioner Baney said they cannot move out of detention and just moth ball it. The question is whether to build onto the jail or let it remain as it is and move into Juvenile. They need to right-size the whole thing. Chair DeBone stated that the Judge says the majority is pre-trial and that is valuable time for negotiations and learning. They can only sentence for eight days in custody. Mr. Hales said few ever do time. There is the 8-day sanction of the 30-day extended program. They can have 56 maximum days pre- adjudicated. They need to have a courtroom there. Mr. Hales noted they have to go back to court every thirty days for a review. Commissioner Baney said she does not want a decision made based on what works for the courts. The State makes cuts and changes and does not think about the impacts. Mr. Hales indicated that they can be sentenced to thirty days by the court as an alternative to Oregon Youth Authority. They work with a staff person on cognitive skills training and lessons. Typically these are kids who have blown out of residential placement that need a behavioral adjustment. The court can order this. They have to do something with these youth. Most cannot go home or have been involved in family crimes. The State has strict policies. Some kids can go to shelter care if appropriate. Under a release plan, they have to find a responsible adult to turn them over to. If the issue is more serious or there is no place for them, they have to stay. It is a matter of simple demographics. This is a bigger county with more population. They take in one kid a day instead of one a week like in other places. There is not that much demand in other counties. He would have to staff a 24/7 intake unit, or decide to cite and release, or send them somewhere else. This happens now and they need this capacity. They cannot go straight to NorCor. If they are held, they have to be detained. The logistics are complicated. They would have to drive the youth somewhere or pay someone to take them. Commissioner Baney said that just because the County is able to cover the debt service, does not make it right. Chair DeBone indicated that they need to make a decision. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 8 of 11 Mr. Nakahira said the Sheriff’s Office would not add staff at this point with either version. They will not fill up all 144 beds the next day, but they have to depend on something when the work center is closed. Sheriff Blanton added that unless there is the potential of a decision to do something with Juvenile, the good men and women working in Juvenile do not know what they will end up with. The four people from the Building Department are not an unfunded liability. There is no budget for new people. Commissioner Unger asked where the work release inmates would go. The Sheriff said either to the dorm or the adult jail. Ms. Ross stated that the gymnasium could hold another ten to twelve dorm style beds, at a cost of about $350,000. Commissioner Unger asked if it is less efficient running two disconnected facilities. Custody and control would be harder to define. He is hearing they will not have to staff up more, but is there more risk. Sherriff Blanton stated that it is not the best case scenario. They have to move meals around, as there is no kitchen in Juvenile. They will mak e it work, but it will not be easy. Things change. They laid off 28 to 30 people previously. They need correction technicians and not officers, and are short eight people now. Chair DeBone asked if there is an avenue to be a tri-county Juvenile. Mr. Hales said this could be explored. They would have to ask Jefferson and Crook counties to finance a set number of beds. They might entertain this if they think it is going away altogether. Commissioner Baney said that NorCor is expanding to become that, and is less expensive to the other counties than Deschutes is. Jefferson and Crook might prefer that. Chair DeBone asked if judicial work will happen while they are away. Mr. Hales replied that is up to the Courts. He does not know if they have video capability. Commissioner Baney said the connection to family is important, too. However, there is no personal touch with Mom and Dad while they are in a 30-day facility anyway. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 9 of 11 Mr. Hales said it is much different at NorCor. The youth spend much less time in their cells in Deschutes County. Sheriff Blanton stated that this is hard for everyone. Whatever is decided, he will make it work. Commissioner Baney indicated she read a Bulletin article pitting the Sheriff against the Board, which is not correct. The Board has to look at all options. Chair DeBone added that he sees this as a solution. People do not like change. Juvenile changes can be considered, but the driver is making a decision on the jail and not analyzing things for another six months. Commissioner Baney stressed that it needs a lot of analyzing. She is not there yet. Chair DeBone stated the liability of the jail population now is the issue, and it would be a bad choice to put it off. Ms. Ross said it does not have to be a permanent solution; it can be incremental. Commissioner Unger asked about the cost of moving into a substandard facility and making it useful – is it worth the cost. Chair DeBone stated that Mr. Hales optimized what he has now. He has the professional capability to deal with this. Mr. Hales said he appreciates the confidence. However, it will be difficult and still will not take care of capacity issues. He does not mean to get on a soap box. They strive to make sure the kids will be okay. This cannot be done in the old facility. If you have a highly disturbed kid moving into a cell, no one can escape this in the old facility. It takes staff using handcuffs or a straightjacket. During visitation, if a kid comes in for intake, you have to kick the visitors out. All of these situations from the old days that you do not hear about now will be back. Commissioner Baney asked if a small amount can be invested to correct some of this. They are already putting money into something that is not being utilized. Maybe they can invest it in capital structure instead. They also would be paying a lot in SDC’s to the City. You just cannot look at the emotional side of decisions. Minutes of Board of Commissioners’ Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 10 of 11 Mr. Hales said that the appropriate conversation would be to identify what is critical to make it operational. It is unrealistic to think it would be satisfactory long-term, so it might not be the best use of money to improve it for the short - term. You have to make things right for the long-term. Chair DeBone asked what would happen to the juveniles from Crook or Jefferson. Mr. Hales replied that the Sheriff will take in; the Parole Office will come out and if the kids is not dangerous, keep him in the office. Someone will have to intercede between law enforcement and the detention center. Commissioner Unger said he wants to hear the consequences on the Juvenile options. On the table it appears there would be moving Juvenile out, the Sheriff in, and spending about $500,000 on adjustments. Chair DeBone said this would displace the courtroom, too. Commissioner Unger noted that usually the cost doubles when you make adjustments. It is expensive to move Juvenile and costs in remolding the old center. The program in Juvenile is expensive but it works. Maybe they should create more of a regional facility and offer the program to others. This sounds like what NorCor is aiming for. Doing a good job in Juvenile Justice saves money in the future on other systems. Maybe investing more in Juvenile is money well spent. Commissioner Baney stated this would be subsidizing other counties. They cover less than costs now. She wants to kick off a needs assessment to do a thorough look at Juvenile. Mr. Hales said they get a discretionary bed allowance from the State, not for public safety kids. They are always under that number. These are post- disposition beds and not detention. This is the primary alternative as they already went through detention. Mr. Nakahira noted that they are renting adult beds in Jefferson County, but management is not sufficient. They have fourteen high-risk offenders scattered throughout the jail, causing staffing and inmate risk. They just cannot add beds anywhere or rent beds; this is no solution. They need separation for mental health and medical issues as well. Mr. Kropp said the Board needs to decide whether to move forward with the jail expansion and the bonding resolution. A motion for this would be needed next Tuesday. The Board will meet again on Tuesday, September 11 at 1 :30 p.m. to discuss this further. 2. Other Items. No other issues were discussed, so the meeting adjourned at 1 :45 p.m. DATED this I~ Day of ()~ 2012 for the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners. Anthony DeBone, Chair Alan Unger, Vice Chair ATTEST: Tam~ner ~~ Recording Secretary Minutes of Board of Commissioners' Work Session Friday, September 7, 2012 Page 11 of 11 Deschutes County Board of Commissioners 1300 NW Wall St., Suite 200, Bend, OR 97701-1960 (541) 388-6570 -Fax (541) 385-3202 -www.deschutes.org WORK SESSION AGENDA DESCHUTES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 12 NOON, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7,2012 1. Jail Expansion Discussion -Continued 2. Other Items 1 1 PLEASE NOTE: At any time during this meeting, an executive session could be called to address issues relating to ORS 192,660(2) (e), real property negotiations; ORS 192.660(2) (h), litigation; ORS 192.660(2)(d), labor negotiations; or ORS 192,660(2) (b), personnel issues, Meeting dates. times and discussion items are subject to change. All meetings are conducted in the Board o/Commissioners' meeting rooms at 1300 NW Wall St .. Bend, unless otherwise indicated. ljyou have questions regarding a meeting, please call 388-6572, Deschutes County meeting locations are wheelchair accessible. Deschutes County provides reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities. For deaf, hearing impaired or speech disabled, dial 7-1-1 to access the state transfer relay serv ice for TrY. Please call (541) 388-6571 regarding alternative formats or for fwther information. .0 II -:­ I I I I g, I -&. ~ I ~ i I I 1 1 I I 1;31 ~ IT I I I I 1 I I 1 . I 1 I ~ -H-1-1 l 'I -. I I ~ I r I --I I - I I I al i ~ I I I r I I ~-I fr---­ r-: ... Q) E ~C'\! 0."­Q)o VIC'\! >. CO "'0';: U. - I i I I ~ r~ I I ~: I _ ('JJ-J I .5:; , > I Q), )-:> s:ct E~' d. -I ~ ~ ' I '+-Z l 1I P, ~ ~ '­I 0~ , ~ ;~ (j~1; I I I I . ---Y I \.~ '-I , ~ ~ ~ ~ J <JI ~ <' \,,1'1) 'C. -.. ~I I I ,I I I I "" .",, ' Q) ! ,,-' "'0 "'0 ~ I .­~ I E I Q) I .. :!-1 ~ c 0.­'" '"Q) "" ~ L.. ~ 0 1