Commissioners tell Sheriff Hall to wait on jail tents
BY PAM BRANNON Gulf Breeze News news@gulfbreezenews.com

Santa Rosa County Sheriff Wendell Hall didn't exactly get the approval to move ahead with his idea for easing overcrowding in his jail. Hall wanted to lease temporary tents to solve the problem. However, county commissioners didn't say 'no', either. Commissioners voted to have the sheriff and county staff move ahead with investigating what the best options would be for a quick solution to the jail overcrowding. They said it might be the tents - and it might not.

Commissioners also instructed the staff to start investigating immediately what options were the most affordable for a permanent solution, as in a permanent building addition.

Commissioner John Broxson said, "I certainly do not want to hold up the sheriff on getting these problems of overcrowding and also his budget solved. I was hoping today we would go ahead and support the sheriff in the idea of these temporary tents, but then also have a proposal on the table to start right away on building a more permanent structure."

Commissioner Gordon Goodin of Navarre said, "Even though we would be making some revenue off these tents, I figured up that over a 10-year period the cost would come to about $700 a square foot and then we won't even own the tents. That is not the most efficient use of tax dollars. I definitely think there is a more permanent better solution."

County attorney Tom Dannheisser said the sheriff's request was not ready for approval by the commission anyway, since there were questions about who would be holding and signing the lease, and other questions his legal staff had.

The sheriff had addressed the commissioners at their committee of the whole meeting last week, showing them photos of the metal-sided tents he was suggesting. The tents have a hard Styrofoam material inside the walls and are metal on the outside. They are now being used in Walton County, and have withstood hurricane-stregth winds. And since it is a lease, if there is any damage the owners of the tents would replace them.

The sheriff is requesting permission to lease two tents that would hold 64 beds each. The county would need to pay $152,844 up front, and when they get the keys pay another $72,176. The three year lease would bring a revenue profit to the sheriff department of $386,905 per year. The tents would house non-violent inmates, and those on work release. One deputy would be placed in the center of each tent 24 hours a day. The tents would be air conditioned.