County board: Too soon to ask

PRINCETON — The Bureau County Board agrees it’s too soon to put an advisory referendum before voters about building a new correctional facility.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Rick Wilkin and Joe Bertetto, co-chairmen of the Bureau County Criminal Justice Center Commission (BCCJCC), gave an update on the commission’s progress toward determining the costs of building a new county jail or a new law and justice center. A study into the costs and needs for a new facility could be completed in the next few weeks.

Wilkin said the BCCJCC decided at its October meeting to ask the county board to approve placing an advisory referendum about the jail on the Feb. 2, 2010, primary ballot. However, that decision was not a unanimous one, he said. There was lively and spirited discussion on when would be the best time to present the information to the public and to place the question before voters.

Bertetto said he was happy with the BCCJCC’s open discussion. The jail committee has been meeting for more than two years, which has been a necessary learning process through research and consultants. Some BCCJCC members are thinking the process is taking too long, Bertetto said.

In response, board member Mike Maynard questioned the need to go before the voters just yet. The board needs solid information to give the voters first before asking them to vote, he said.

Wilkin agreed. Before asking taxpayers to spend money — an estimated $8 million for a new jail or $15 million for a new law and justice center — the county needs to be very clear on its information presented to the public, he said.

After further discussion, Bertetto made the motion to place an advisory referendum on the February ballot. The motion died for lack of a second.

By voting against the motion, the county board is not saying it doesn’t want public input, Wilkin said. Rather, the county board is saying the board needs more information to help the public become better informed on the issue, he said.

In other BCCJCC discussion, Bertetto said the county also needs to address the current costs to repair the county jail. The latest jail repair study is three years old. Another committee could be needed to determine those current repair costs, or the BCCJCC could take that responsibility, he said.