This week, commissioners addressed their plans to pay for a new Platte County Detention Center with two ballot measures on the August ballot.
At the Monday, May 20 administrative session, commissioners heard a presentation by County Administrator Wes Minder. The approved ballot language must be submitted to the Platte County Board of Elections by Tuesday, May 28.
The plan presented last week will meet county needs until 2048 and features a 320 bed jail expansion as well as the modernization of the 151 bed existing jail. It also gives the county the ability to separate violent from non-violent inmates, features an expanded medical and mental health division, relocates prisoner intake to a new lower level, renovates the “Futures” area into trustee facilities as well as support services such as kitchen and laundry space and adds program rooms for GED and other programs.
Commissioners plan to place two questions on the Tuesday, Aug. 6 ballot:
Question 1 – Shall Platte County issue its general obligation bonds in the amount not exceed $85 million for the purpose of designing, acquiring, constructing, installing, improving, finishing and equipping an expanded and improved inmate detention center in the county, including without limitation more areas to segregate violent and sexual offenders and to provide expanded mental health care and education of inmates?
Question 2 – Shall Platte County be authorized to impose a countywide sales tax for the purpose of designing, acquiring, constructing, installing, improving, finishing and equipping an expanded and improved inmate detention center in the county, including without limitation the payment of debt service on general obligation bonds issued for such purpose, at a rate of one-half of one percent for a period of 20 years from the date on which the tax is first imposed?
“A similar measure was on the ballot in 2019 and voters said no – I was one of them,” said Presiding Commissioner Scott Fricker. “I didn’t understand the issues. Since that time the situation at the jail has gotten worse – more crowded, more dangerous. It’s time to give the voters another shot at this.”
Minder said the $85 million is the top end of the project, which may come in lower, depending upon construction costs.
According to Minder, the last time the county issued major debt was to renovate the Platte County Community Centers after the renewal of the parks tax in 2010. A county financial advisor said the county currently has no direct debt.
The Zona Rosa parking garage situation will have an effect on the county’s interest rates when seeking general obligation bonds, according to financial advisor Joey McLiney.
In 2007, $32 million in bonds were purchased to pay for the construction of the parking garage, which would be funded through Zona Rosa sales tax collections. If collections fell short, Platte County agreed to consider picking up the slack.
Twice in court, judges have ruled that Platte County was only required to consider making the payments, but not required to actually make them. Commissioners have declined to make payments on the parking garage, and in retaliation financial rating agencies reduced the county’s bond rating to junk status.
McLiney said his firm is in talks with the rating agencies to restore the county’s ratings.
Effectively, McLiney said, the rating agencies are mad and the rating issued is punitive. The county’s rating should be at AA due to its assessed valuation and current lack of debt.
The $85 million price tag breaks down into about $65 million for construction of the new three-story jail facility and renovation of the old jail facility, $11 million for design and professional fees $4 million contingency and another $2-5 million for bond costs and reserves.
Question two covers the funding of the bonds. With the half-cent sales tax proposed, property taxes would remain unchanged. The sales and use tax would cover debt payment for the construction as well as the increased operational costs including additional staff, food, supplies and medical expenses.
“The jail we built 26 years ago is full and we have done everything we can to help people stay out of jail such as increased house arrest and treatment court,” said District Commissioner Joe Vanover. “Platte County needs a solution that will get us through the next 25 years. Expanding and improving the detention center will let us better segregate violent and sexual offenders and provide mental health care and educational opportunities for inmates. All that we have done to build up law enforcement and public safety will fall apart if we don’t have a jail that is large enough to house the people that need to be there. It is time to let the voters decide the level of public safety they want in Platte County.”