'We need to instill a sense of urgency'

MILTON — Since Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson took office Jan. 3, he has worked to stave off an ever-increasing jail population, which entered overcrowded numbers last summer. Johnson and the county commissioners continue discussing expanding the jail but one-time costs to build and reoccurring staffing costs continue to be sticking points.

Johnson and Major Randy Tifft approached the Santa Rosa County commissioners at the May 7 Santa Rosa County Commissioner Committee meeting with an update of a proposed county jail expansion.  

The discussion included options to increase inmate capacity at the jail facilities. Currently, the maximum capacity for inmates at the jail is 682. By 2025 Johnson estimates the average population to be 925.

One short-term solution is to create a work-release building, which would be able to house 120 inmates raising the max jail capacity to 802, according to Johnson.  

The total cost for fully operating the jail annex annually, Johnson said, would be approximately $1.7 million.

Tifft said that they have to make sure that they have the funds required to hire the staff needed for the needed expansion. This includes medical, maintenance, as well as security staff. 

“We need to instill a sense of urgency.” Johnson said in a later interview. “Come summer, the numbers of inmates are going up.”

Johnson and Tifft said their ultimate goal is to see an expansion of the existing jail that would accommodate 500 more inmates than the current maximum capacity.

The commissioners asked for more information before approving any option.

“We would like to like to see how the new federal government contract looks first," Commissioner Bob Cole said. "Currently, federal government gives very little money to offset the cost of housing inmates."

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: 'We need to instill a sense of urgency'