Augusta City Administrator Odie Donald has placed a request before the Augusta Commission to spend $1.13 million on emergency repairs and updates at the Charles B. Webster Detention Center.
According to purchase orders, all of the security systems and locks in pods F and G will need to be replaced at a cost of $760,915, by far the most expensive part of the upgrade.
Security cameras in pods F and G also need to be replaced and upgraded at a cost of $164,603. The center’s kitchen needs renovation, and the lowest bid came in at $97,523. It will cost the city $133,600 to replace the showers in pods A and C as well as waterproofing of the shower area.
Repairs to the roof of the facility bidded out at $24,950.
MORE: Demolition Of The Old Jail Is A Done Deal
The actual total cost of the project comes to $1.18 million, nearly $50,000 more than what Donald requested on paper. The discrepancy is due to a last-minute change order that was included in the request for proposal (RFP) after it was determined that the kitchen floor is currently uneven and will need to be leveled.
In April, the Augusta Commission voted not to allow Sheriff Richard Roundtree access to commissary and telephone call profits to use for maintenance and upkeep of the detention center and instead gave the authority over maintenance at the detention center to the City Administrator. Therefore, the request for funding came from Donald himself as opposed to the sheriff.
According to the documents, most of the costs will be covered by left over SPLOST IV and VII funding.
In March, voters approved SPLOST VIII, which allocated $26 million for a full enlargement and restoration of the center which, according to the official proposal submitted, would make the center viable for the next 30 years. However, because the city has not begun collecting SPLOST VII yet, the emergency funding will have to come from a different source.
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The Webster facility, located at 1941 Phinizy Road, was completed in 1997, just a little more than a decade after the main jail at 401 Walton Way was opened in 1985. When it opened, the Webster building was meant to be simply an overflow unit for the overcrowded main jail.
However, not long after the Webster facility opened, mold issues and other problems cut the lifespan of the main jail dramatically. The decision was made to decommission the Walton Way facility.
At that time, officials scrambled to add more jail pods as well as an inmate intake facility. Two courtrooms were also added so that inmates could attend their initial hearings remotely via a video link.
While construction of the Webster Center progressed, inmates would have to be processed at Walton Way, transported the 10 miles to Phinizy Road and then later transported back and forth to the Augusta/Richmond County Judicial center for bond hearings.
In 2012, work was finished on the new additions at Phinizy Road and the Walton Way location was emptied of inmates for good.
That same year, the new $7.4 million Sheriff’s Administration Building was completed leaving the Walton Way building totally vacant.
The Walton Way jail is currently undergoing demolition.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
