COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – Even though crews have been clearing trees from the site of the new Branch County Jail for the last couple of weeks, the official groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled to take place Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m..
The new jail is being built behind the current lockup after a 20-year, 1.25 mill proposal was approved 4,119 to 3,521 by Branch County voters in August 2018.
Previous millage questions for a new jail were defeated in 2016 and 2006.
It’s estimated the cost of building the new jail will be at least $22 million.
Byce-Securiture and Associates of Kalamazoo was picked by the Branch County Board of Commissioners to be the architect and engineer for the new county jail last December. The jail design and location was approved by commissioners in July.
The current aging facility has been in operation for nearly 27 years in the former Maple Lawn Medical Care facility. When the jail was moved from the old building on East Pearl Street in Coldwater, it was termed only a temporary ten year solution until a new jail could be constructed.
The building which houses the old jail has had numerous maintenance issues in recent years and is said to be crumbling. Before it became a jail, the building was a senior care facility. Once the new jail is opened, the old facility will be torn down.
