The Kewaunee County Board will restart its jail planning efforts, but not without stark reminders of the work that has already been done. The board voted 11-7 to move forward with Midwest Construction Consultants to design a new jail facility.
After working with Venture Architects and The Samuels Group on the county’s previous jail plan iteration, Kewaunee County Board Chairperson Dan Olson contacted the Iowa-based firm to develop a viable, but more cost-effective facility. Plans on a new jail were halted last month when the county board decided to not exceed their original budget of around $25 million. Bids for the project came in well above that mark at approximately $33.2 million.
Kewaunee County Sheriff Matt Joski described during the meeting one of the facilities built by Midwest Construction Consultants in Henry County, Iowa while also issuing a stern warning to the board about the upcoming planning process.
After being prompted by Supervisor Tim Kinnard, Kewaunee County Finance Director Paul Kunesh told the board that they had spent approximately $1.1 million over the last year planning the previous iteration of the jail.
