CALDWELL, Idaho — Overcrowding in the women’s jail facility being called a ‘crisis’ by Canyon County Officials. Now there are plans for new facilities, after temporary accommodations were removed.
“We can’t keep the community safe, unless we have the jail beds to be able to put people in jail who are a threat to the community,” said Christopher Boyd - Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney.
Christopher Boyd is the Prosecuting Attorney for Canyon County. He and his team see daily the need for a new jail cell facility.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | Officials explore alternatives as Canyon County jails face overcrowding crisis
“Because of the small size of the jail relative to the number of arrests we have coming in… We’re triaging who doesn’t get to stay in the jail,” said Boyd.
A decision that Boyd feels could put the Canyon County community in danger. “We work as hard as we can to pick the person that we think is least likely to kill someone or least likely to do some really terrible crime, but it’s a ticking time bomb.”
The solution? County commissioners, sheriff and staff are sharing their next steps with the community, outlining a Phase 1 project to house a little under 200 female inmates.
The project comes as these temporary cells were removed. 28 semi-trailers, which were converted into housing —known as Pod-6.
Canyon County public works says the maintenance on the pods was unsustainable and costly to the community’s taxes.
Now, the county is considering a 26-acre property near Pond Lane for the future facility.
The project could be paid for with county savings, as they explore funding options and different timelines.
Long term - and In response to the four bond failures in recent years – county officials would look to the state’s legislature to approve the option for a ‘local option sales tax’… to be on the ballot.
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Every half cent on the dollar would fund the jail project’s later phases.
“The good thing that I think that they’re doing right now is that their considering all of these phases, which give the voters any opportunity to say ‘well I want this much, or I want that much’,” said Boyd.
County officials say they aim to keep construction costs low with the new facility, and design concepts so far resemble a simple warehouse.
