DATE: Friday, March 28, 1997                TAG: 9703280555

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   57 lines

NORFOLK DEDICATES 8-STORY JAIL ADDITION WITH 1,400 INMATES, NORFOLK HOUSES MORE PRISONERS THAN ANY OTHER CITY IN VIRGINIA

With the dubious distinction of housing more prisoners than any other city in Virginia, Norfolk on Thursday dedicated the taxpayers' new $24.9 million jail addition to the Public Safety Building.

Mayor Paul D. Fraim called the occasion ``bittersweet.'' The eight-story, 317-bed facility is needed to ease overcrowding, he said, but he added that it is a shame the city must spend so much to house more prisoners.

Fraim said he would rather use the money to fund education and other programs that might steer people away from crime, even though he said Norfolk has ``taken more steps to reduce crime than any other locality in Virginia.''

``We could have built a new high school for what it cost to build this,'' Fraim said. ``We ought to have as a goal in the city of Norfolk to not build any more jail cells - we have enough. We need to build more schools and boys' and girls' clubs.''

Norfolk currently houses about 1,400 inmates, Sheriff Robert McCabe said Thursday. That surpasses by about 200 the jailhouse population in Richmond, which rivals Norfolk for the most inmates in Virginia, he said.

``Unfortunately, that's not a great claim to fame,'' McCabe said.

Besides housing the most prisoners, Norfolk now has the largest local jail, with an ``official rated capacity'' of 896 beds, McCabe said. Richmond, which did have the largest, is rated for 770 beds, jail officials there said.

``Opening up a jail is probably not a great event as far as what the public looks for . . . but it is a necessary evil,'' McCabe said.

The city had been under pressure from the U.S. Justice Department to reduce overcrowding in the old jail, which opened in 1962 with 579 beds.

But even with the new addition, McCabe said, inmates will be double-bunked in cells. Doubling up means the new facility can safely hold almost 640 inmates, he said. The old jail contains about 976 double-bunked inmates, he added.

The sheriff's office began moving inmates into the addition last month, McCabe said.

Despite misgivings about the need for a larger jail, officials said taxpayers are getting their money's worth. The state is chipping in about $6.2 million of the cost.

The state-of-the-art facility is known as a ``keyless'' jail because of its high-tech features, including security cameras and computerized touch-screen controls that open and close doors. It also features a half-court gym, expanded medical wards, visiting areas on each floor and an enlarged kitchen.

Officials said they save money by combining the jail's heating and cooling system into a central plant serving City Hall and other public buildings nearby. Also, the city upgraded the jail's electrical system and can save on bills by using a generator system to provide power to itself during times of peak demand.

In about a year, Norfolk will gain access to even more jail beds, with the opening of the $66 million Hampton Roads Regional Jail. That 876-bed facility, under construction in Portsmouth, will serve Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton and Newport News.

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