TOLEDO, Ohio — Lucas County is one step forward in the saga to build a new jail. Commissioners approved funding for an essential part of the project Tuesday.
The commissioners approved funding of more than $500,000 for soil samples and ground testing. Lucas County Commissioner Pete Gerken said this is a key part of the build process.
"You have to have a place to build something and so this is the first part of preparing a site for the vertical construction to go to," Gerken said.
The new jail will sit on 12 parcels of land in downtown Toledo. It will have more than 400 beds, 24 medical beds and a mental health wing. The total cost is around $187 million.
Gerken said the next step will be the final touches on the engineering design.
"The next piece is gathering the experts in to help finish the design," Gerken said. "We know it's going to be a little over 400 people. We know kind of how the cell blocks are being placed out. But now we're getting finishes, materials of those things that make the place happen."
The current jail is still in operation and isn't being forgotten in the meantime.
"It's worse than it's been and it was bad before," Gerken said. "We're going to do everything we can to maintain safety and security. That means we still have to put some money into it a little bit at a time in the jail. You gotta make sure the showers work. The heat, the air conditioners. The meals get served. So that's going to be going on, on a continual basis."
If everything goes as planned, the new jail is expected to be done by the end of 2026.