PORTSMOUTH — The Hampton Roads Regional Jail Authority officially approved Portsmouth’s pitch to buy the now closed facility.
The jail, on Elmhurst Lane, opened to fanfare in 1998 with a capacity of 1,300. The publicly owned facility housed overflow inmates from Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Hampton and Newport News. But in October, the full HRRJ board — including city managers, sheriffs and council members from each jurisdiction — voted unanimously to close the jail April 1 after several cities began pulling back on the number of inmates housed there.
The authority unanimously approved the sale following a closed session at the facility Wednesday. The vote initiates a sales agreement to be signed by the city of Portsmouth, and it amends the authority’s bylaws by reducing the body to five representatives of each city before dissolving in two years.
The move means the facility could serve as Portsmouth’s new city jail, freeing up some space that would allow the city to convert the current aging waterfront jail facility into a tax-generating property — a goal the city has been working toward for years.
Over the years, Portsmouth’s city jail on Crawford Street has faced problems, with the sheriff’s office contending the city has neglected the jail and a Circuit Court judge ordering the city to make improvements.
“I think we did the right thing,” said Portsmouth Vice Mayor Lisa Lucas-Burke, an HRRJ board member. “I’m really happy that everyone agreed for Portsmouth to take it on because this is our hometown and we should have that option to be able to do whatever we need to do with it.”
Lucas-Burke said incoming city manager Steven Carter is expected to sign on Portsmouth’s behalf once he’s sworn in this week. The Virginian-Pilot was unable to obtain a copy of the sales agreement, but board chair Robert Geis, Chesapeake’s deputy city manager, said it can be disclosed once officially signed.
Once that’s complete, the respective city councils have to unanimously pass resolutions approving the purchase, which authority members expect could happen by May. Geis said the transaction is expected to be finalized by July, which includes a due diligence period similar to the process of purchasing a home.
Lucas-Burke told The Pilot that a final cost is still under negotiation, but previous projections were “in the $30 million range.”
Geis said when the authority dissolves, any remaining cash on hand will be distributed evenly across the five jurisdictions. Over the next two-year “wind down” period, authority members will continue closing contracts and paying utility bills alongside some construction on the roof, with limited staff on site to help with the closeout.
At least some of the facility could permanently house the Portsmouth’s juvenile inmates. But City Council members are awaiting more information about the costs to convert the city jail basement into a space that could temporarily house juveniles to reduce the burden on officers and deputies transporting them to court from housing facilities hours away, an issue The Pilot reported in February. Sheriff Michael Moore has been calling for a temporary solution as deputies were traveling as many as 15 hours and from as far as Bristol, Tennessee, to transport the city’s juvenile inmates.
That’s because Portsmouth previously had an agreement to house its youth charged with crimes with Chesapeake Juvenile Services, which had been holding minors for other localities for more than 30 years. But a decision last spring to begin holding only Chesapeake’s juvenile inmates meant Portsmouth’s youth no longer had a dedicated place to go.
Council members could then decide whether it makes more sense to use the city jail basement, which may include weighing the costs of the extra transportation with the cost to make needed repairs, or wait to fix up a space in the HRRJ facility.
Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com
