CALDWELL, Idaho — After months of debate over the future location of a new Canyon County jail, county officials say negotiations with the City of Caldwell are continuing and an agreement is being drafted for a proposed site along Highway 44.
Idaho news 6 has been following developments in the project, and this is the first we are hearing of progress made towards an agreement.
According to Steve Cushman, Director of Constituent Services for Canyon County, attorneys representing both the county and the city are working to finalize a memorandum of agreement outlining details for the project.
WATCH | Canyon County, Caldwell negotiating agreement on proposed Highway 44 jail site
"Right now with negotiations, we've got a site located. We are working with the City of Caldwell. Both of our legal teams are working, putting together a memorandum of agreement to get the final details hammered out on the location for the site," Cushman said.
The update comes as Canyon County continues its decades-long effort to build a new jail facility. County leaders have argued for years that the existing jail faces overcrowding challenges, while voters have rejected jail-related bond measures four times since 2006.
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In recent months, discussions between Canyon County and Caldwell have focused on the proposed Highway 44 location and how infrastructure improvements needed for the site would be funded.
Cushman said one of the remaining hurdles involves extending utility services to the property.
"Moving to the site required some additional lift as far as running water and sewer to that site," Cushman said. "Currently, the county is in discussion with the City of Caldwell as well as the Caldwell Housing Authority to work through some means to get those two issues taken care of so that we can move forward and develop the site."
While county officials say progress is being made, there is currently no public timeline for when a final agreement could be approved.
"It's with the legal teams right now," Cushman said. "As far as timeline, I wouldn't want to speculate on when that would be likely to occur."
The county says developing a new jail remains a priority as it works to address overcrowding concerns at the current facility.
"This is definitely something that's a priority for us," Cushman said. "...so we can get the overcrowding taken care of in the jail."
According to county officials, the next major milestone will be finalizing development requirements and agreements needed to prepare the site before construction can begin.
Caldwell's Public information Officer Jessica Watts said the city is currently encorporating language from a municipal services agreement into the agreement with the county.
County and city leaders have not announced when the memorandum of agreement will be brought forward for public discussion.
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