Rebecca SitzesThe Shelby Star
The county held a public meeting to reveal plans for the new law enforcement complex in uptown Shelby Monday.
Renderings of the proposed 348,902-square-foot structure were on display2, and county officials said the purpose of the meeting was to collect public input on the plans. A second meeting will be held at the county administration building on Dec. 13 at 2 p.m.
Around a dozen people attended the meeting, including local attorneys, members of law enforcement and the general public.
Moseley Architects, a Charlotte firm, is handling the project, and construction will be completed by Yates and Metcon.
Kerri Melton, assistant county manager, said they welcomed people to write down comments, suggestions or concerns, and the county will consider this input as they move forward and if possible, incorporate them into the design.
The law enforcement center will consolidate the courthouse, sheriff’s office and jail into one area. Jail space has long been an issue as well as an aging courthouse. Currently the majority of inmates are housed in the annex on McBrayer Street, which is a residential neighborhood, with an additional 84 beds in the courthouse jail. There are currently a total of 324 beds.
Plans to expand the jail and renovate the courthouse, instead of building a new facility, were originally in the works until COVID. The pandemic led to the mandated release of inmates to reduce populations in an attempt to prevent the spread of the virus, and the opening of the public defender’s office early this year further reduced the number of inmates.
County Manager Brian Epley said this allowed the county some breathing room to study the problem in depth and come up with long term solutions.
In February of 2021, county commissioners were presented with a public safety capital plan with the option to renovate the existing courthouse, which would buy the county another 10 to 12 years of use, and expand the McBrayer Street jail to add 100 beds for a cost, at that time, of $14 million. The other option was to create a campus with all three operations in one centrally located area which would give the county another 400 beds and meet all the modern needs in the courthouse that the current structure can’t, including improved safety and additional courtrooms.
“This building is going to be a 100 year fix,” said Melton.
Epley said they also had an independent jail study completed to look into why Cleveland County has such a high rate of incarceration and how to organically reduce those numbers.
Following the presentation in 2021, commissioners decided to pursue the justice center solution.
The project is estimated to cost $150 to $160 million with grants covering the cost of the courthouse and sheriff’s office and the county taking on $60 million in debt for the construction of the jail.
Epley said the county positioned itself to pay off the majority of its current debt in the next 10 years and can afford to take on the new debt without negatively impacting the county budget and without raising taxes.
If the project goes seamlessly, it could be completed in the spring of 2026.
Melton said since it is a jail and it is located uptown, it was important that the facility not look like a jail. There will be some perimeter black decorative fencing but none of the barbed wire that is the typical hallmark of a jail.
Melton said the county chose the location for several reasons, one being because the county already owned the 8.3 acres uptown. The courthouse has always been a prominent part of uptown Shelby, and they wanted to keep it that way.
Shelby residents, Galaxy Lineberger and Perry Anthony both attended the meeting.
Neither are happy with the plans.
Lineberger said aesthetically, the massive structure doesn’t fit in with uptown Shelby. She also doesn’t want the centerpiece of the historic uptown area to be focused on the criminal justice system and the incarceration of people.
“It looks like that’s what our industry is, incarcerating criminals,” she said.
Anthony said he understood there was a need for more space and something new, but didn’t feel like this fit the bill.
They felt that it was way more space than what the need demands.
Melton said photos of the renderings are not yet available online, but they plan to add them in the future for the public to view.
The project will take place in stages and the former Star building will be demolished in upcoming months to make way for the construction of the jail. The existing courthouse will remain in place until the complex is built and will then be demolished to create green spaces and additional parking.
“It’s well planned and well funded,” Epley said. “The county will end up with a project the community can be proud of.”
Epley said his upcoming departure could impact the timing of the project and that ultimately, no commitments have been made and the board of commissioners will make the decision to move forward.
Rebecca Sitzes can be reached at rsitzes@gannett.com
