Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, May 18, 1994 TAG: 9405180074
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: HILLSVILLE LENGTH: Medium
The Carroll County Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously not to participate further in the venture, which includes the counties of Grayson, Floyd, Giles and Pulaski and the city of Radford.
One reason for the withdrawal may have been the probability that the jail would have been located in Carroll County. The most favorable site among those studied was in the county's Pine Creek District where Virginia 100 meets Beaver Dam Road.
Supervisor Avis Collier, who represents Pine Creek, made the motion last week to drop out, saying opposition to the jail was ``solid'' in his district.
The main reason given by the supervisors was that they felt it would be less expensive to use their own jail than to participate in a regional venture.
Supervisor Billy Barker warned that this could change as state requirements for jails continue to become more expensive. The county's jail was built in 1938.
So far, only Radford City Council has voted to participate in building the proposed 360-bed jail. The other localities had helped pay for a study required by the state to qualify the project for 50 percent state funding. Carroll's share had been about $26,000.
The Grayson County Board of Supervisors has scheduled a public hearing on participation for 7 p.m. June 28.
Most Grayson County officials had seemed to think it would be to the county's financial advantage to be part of the regional jail.
But now, Grayson County Administrator Don Young said, there may be more questions because Grayson - with Carroll's dropping out - is geographically separate from the other localities.
Wythe County helped fund an earlier study but declined to go farther. The second study was necessary because the 1993 General Assembly passed regulations requiring more data.
Pulaski County would have the largest number of prisoners of any locality in the project, so its participation is a key element. Carroll would have had the second largest.
Now it is likely the project will be scaled down, even if all the other localities stick with it.
A Pulaski County site has also been considered, but the jail committee that has been working on the project for several years seemed to have decided that the Carroll site was superior. More study may be necessary on the proposed Pulaski site.
The jail committee also lost its chairman. Carroll County Administrator Billy Mitchell had held that position.
by CNB