Greene County to receive $15M for jail renovation

The Ohio Jail Safety and Security Program recently awarded funding of approximately $50 million to eleven county jail projects. Two counties in the Dayton area have received over $15 million for renovation and improvement projects.

Mike DeWine and Annette Chambers Smith, Director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC), announced funding support for construction and renovation projects and security improvements at more than a dozen jails across Ohio.

Greene County, one of the counties that received funding, has received 15 million dollars in matching funds to renovate and expand the Greene County Adult Detention Center on Greenway Boulevard.

The project will increase the size of the facility by 76,000 square foot, add 250 new beds, and repurpose existing beds to mental health counseling and recovery programs. The project, once completed, will allow Greene County, located at Market Street, to close its Greene County Jail. It was built in 1969. The project costs are covered by the award, which represents 25%.

"Our inmates will be safer," Greene County Sheriff Scott Anger told our news partners Dayton 24/7 Now. We'll be able provide more programming to people with mental illness or drug abuse issues.

Miami County received an additional $175,000 for a needs analysis that will identify current and future criminal justice requirements of the county. This includes a need assessment for a new prison. The North County Road 25A full-service facility opened in 1972.

DeWine stated that it is important for jails to be safe and secure but also that they can help inmates make positive changes and get them on the right path after release. With this funding, DeWine said that we are helping local jails to move forward with project that will help them better meet the needs of our modern criminal-justice system and support the increasing number of inmates who struggle with substance abuse and mental health issues.

The grants were awarded earlier this week during a meeting with local leaders and the Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio in Stryker. This facility serves Williams, Defiance and Fulton counties, as well as Henry and Lucas. CCNO is receiving more than $4.6M to improve inmate and staff security through the installation secure cell doors on a unit in the jail housing high-security inmates. The funds will be used to build an operations center between two dorms of minimum security for the staff.