COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – A citizens group asked the Branch County Board of Commissioners Tuesday to put a millage question on the August primary ballot for a new county public safety complex. The Branch County Citizens Public Safety Committee proposal calls for one-and-a-half mills for a term of 20 years, which would raise between $34 million and $38 million for the construction of a public safety complex which would include a new county jail.
Committee Chair Pat Albright said it would built near the current jail which would be torn down if the new facility becomes a reality. The committee is proposing the new jail would have between 200 and 240 beds for inmates. The new facility would also be constructed to accommodate future expansion.
Albright said the proposal includes having 911 operations and Circuit Court probation in the new complex. The new facility would also be constructed to accommodate future expansion. He said the number of beds for inmates was based on projections but the estimated number of inmates in the projection is flexible.
Previous millage proposals for a new jail have been voted down by Branch County taxpayers.
Branch County Sheriff John Pollack said this proposal maybe more palatable with 911 and Circuit Court probation being included as part of the complex. In order for the millage proposal to get on the August ballot, county officials will have to hustle. The ballot language must be submitted to the county clerk’s office by May 15, 2018.
