Citizens for Accountability in Jail Expansion

NEW SITE

2009-03-28T13:52:00.000-07:00

This is the new website for Eau Claire Jail information:

http://www.eauclairejail.com/

This blogger site will decompose shortly...

back and forth...

2008-07-16T09:07:00.000-07:00

This article, from the Leader Telegram, reveals the wide margin of error that County staff are operating with in predicting costs for this project. Please probe and reveal more, local media!

Eau Claire County jail job numbers change again

By Andrew Dowd

Leader-Telegram staff

Flak from Eau Claire County Board members and the public prompted Sheriff's Department leaders to cut the staffing request for additional employees to run the new jail.

After presenting a 37.5 full-time equivalency request last week in committee meetings, Sheriff Ron Cramer and Jail Administrator Dan Bresina said they cut that number to 20 by Tuesday night's County Board meeting.

"We're down to 20 this evening," Cramer said.

After an erroneous request for 19 employees had been made, followed by the 37.5 figure, board member Pat LaVelle said he's worried the Sheriff's Department will ask for even more staff after opening the new jail in April 2010.

"I'd like to see it at 20, but I'm afraid it's gonna go higher," LaVelle said.

Board member Ken Fulgione razzed county staff for proceeding with a multimillion dollar construction project without a firm budget on the day-to-day costs to operate the new facility.

"I am totally astounded that this continues to go on," he said.

Staffing costs weren't the only jail issue County Board members railed on Tuesday night.

The county incurred $5,000 in added costs for delays in closing the purchase of a property bought for the new jail.

"Basically it's a penalty for not closing it on a timely basis," county attorney Keith Zehms said.

The County Board approved purchase of Gerald Mattson's house at 741 Second Ave. for $148,000 plus $25,000 in relocation expenses at its June 17 meeting, but the deal didn't close until Tuesday morning.

County Board member Will Fantle asked why the county was delayed in its purchase.

Project manager Frank Draxler said there were multiple people working on the deal with Mattson, and he didn't know why closing did not meet the deadline.

"I don't have the full story," he said. However, he added that it would be brought to the Administration Committee next week.

In his status report to the board on the new jail and courthouse remodeling project, Draxler said it still is coming in at the approved price and timeline.

"We are still on budget; we're within the $59.1 million," he said.

If the county can secure rezoning for the jail from the Eau Claire City Council in August and construction begins in mid-October, Draxler said, the budget should hold despite increases in building materials costs.

Dowd can be reached at 833-9204, 800-236-7077 or andrew.dowd@ecpc.com.

- The request for 20 additional positions for the new Eau Claire County Jail will go to the Judiciary and Law Enforcement Committee next week before proceeding to other committees and then the County Board.

Easy, Important Action: Letter Writing

2008-06-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

Hey jail-alternative proponents!

Here are some example letters you can send to your city council members. It is best to
edit them a little, or write something completely from scratch or by using the issue
list below, but any letter is better than no letter - The city council needs our
help to act, and that starts with the number of letters they receive.  A paper copy
is much better than an email. Both 'at large' city council members, and your
ward/district representatives need to hear from you. If you can hand write a letter,
it's even better.

We are also at various events encouraging people to sign these letters.  Consider
coming this Thursday at Phoenix Park 6PM for the concert series, we will have a tent
setup with info to hand out.

Here's that link for letters once again!

slow news day

2008-06-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

Hmmm...

From WEAU.com:

New Jail Brings Jobs

Nearly two dozen new jobs will be coming to the area once the new Eau Claire County Jail is built.

Sheriff Ron Cramer says the Law Enforcement Committee approved 19 new correctional officer positions for the jail opening in 2010.

And Cramer says it benefits more than just the jail, since promotions could be made from the jail to put more deputies on the road.

He says the approval will go to the Personnel Committee, which will start recruiting workers next year. end story

County Struggling to gain Momentum

2008-06-04T06:13:00.000-07:00

This TV piece makes it clear how hard the County is struggling to maintain an image that the Jail project is moving forward. This is NOT news, this is speculation. Instead of talking to citizens in EC County or nearly half the County Board members that present very clear alternatives to the downtown jail project, or further investigate the recent announcement that it's likely to cost millions more than even a few months ago, this is what we get. When will they stop wasting our money on this failed project and take the high road?

The jail doesn't need to be downtown for the Sheriffs and Police to communicate efficiently. The jail doesn't need to be downtown for detectives to get more room. And the main word in the headline that still reveals the precarious nature of the downtown jail: could (not will!).

From WEAU.com:

Local Law Enforcement Could Soon Share a Space

Plans to expand and remodel the Eau Claire County jail and courthouse could have a big impact on two local law enforcement agencies. In fact, the Sheriff’s Department and the Police Department could eventually share the same space.

Sheriff Ron Cramer says the two department have been talking about sharing spaces since the county started planning big changes to the current courthouse. He says moving-in together would help make day-to-day operations more efficient.

"Communication is so much a part of what we do in our job day-to-day with the public and with other law enforcement agencies,” Sheriff Cramer said. “So, I think that communication will be enhanced."

"Anytime you're sitting side-by-side it's just going to facilitate increased communication,” added Police Chief, Jerry Matysik.

But, the collaboration could mean even more to the Police Department. That’s because Chief Matysik says his staff has been dealing with a space-crunch for quite some time.

"Our detectives are really kind of packed in like sardines back there,” Chief Matysik said. “We don't have proper facilities to do very many interviews at one time."

If this shared spaces plan doesn’t work out, he says the Police Department will have to move somewhere else.

"That would be detrimental to us here at the Sheriff's Department, because we share a lot of information back and forth,” Cramer said.

Sheriff Cramer says combining the two departments also saves the county $2 million on the courthouse project.

He says it would also make this one of the first areas in the state where the Police and Sheriff’s Departments work within the same area.

One Root of the Problem

2008-06-03T06:19:00.000-07:00

From TV-18:

New Study Highlights Eau Claire's Tough Justice System

Eau Claire’s chief of police reacts to a new study that shows the county has one of the toughest justice systems in the state.

The study, conducted by the National Institute of Corrections, says more people are arrested and sent through the court system in Eau Claire than in other parts of Wisconsin. Jerry Matysik, Eau Claire Chief of Police, says more crimes are reported in Eau Claire than in some of the other counties it was compared to, and so, naturally, more arrests take place.

Matysik does acknowledge, however, there are some things that can be done to ease the burden on the county’s justice system, which some experts say is operating beyond capacity.

“We can perhaps take some of the more minor offenses and instead of charging them as crimes, look at city ordinance citations, perhaps, that might reduce some of the stress on the system,” says Matysik.

Some of those minor offenses could include disorderly conduct, minor drug possession, and minor shoplifting.

Last week, Chief Matysik shared his ideas with other agencies within the county’s justice system. He says it is too early to know when any changes could take place.

Inflation Rates Raise Jail Cost

2008-05-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

TV-18 Reports that every month the project is "delayed" it costs an extra 230,000 dollars. Wow. In just a few months that adds up to a MILLION DOLLARS because of poor planning.

Here's the story from their website:

Inflation Rates Could Impact Jail Project

Inflation could drive up the cost of the Eau Claire County Jail expansion project if it’s delayed.

Contractors say the rate of inflation for construction projects in this part of the country is double the national average. They say that’s due to supply and demand, in addition to increased fuel costs.

Contractors consider inflation when locking in prices for a project. However, when a project is delayed, inflation can have a major impact on additional costs.

“If you take a $10 million project, and you assume that five and a half percent is correct, it costs them about $46,000 every month that they don’t start the project,” explained Don Carlson, Vice President of Operations at Market and Johnson, the construction company that will be building the new jail.

With the current rate of inflation, Market and Johnson says the jail project could cost an extra $230,000 a month if it’s delayed. However, the company expects the rate of inflation to continue to rise, which would also increase the cost of any potential delays.

Index

2008-05-27T07:42:00.001-07:00

Index of Jail Infomation

University Analysis of Jail Site

2008-05-27T07:36:00.000-07:00

Visit this link to some great information compiled at UWEC.

"At the end of February, 2008, the Jail Division, National Institute of Corrections, U.S. Bureau of Prisons (NIC) released the Eau Claire County Local Justice System Assessment. The report was provided as technical assistance to the leadership of justice agencies and units of government operating the justice system within Eau Claire County, Wisconsin.

"Recommendations in the report include the need for improved public participation, better analysis of existing data, and use of UWEC expertise to analyze data. Our University, with its emphasis on faculty-student collaborative research, is ideally suited to make just such high value contributions to local environmental and social needs and issues, and many departments have already been involved in doing so.

"One example of the contribution UWEC can make to the jail issue is from Dr. Christina Hupy’s Advanced Geographic Information Systems (GIS) class, Spring 2008. In the class, geography major Beth Ellison created a series of maps that show the location of the currently proposed new jail in relation to NIC jail siting recommendations. See the maps here.

May Meetings

2008-05-05T08:10:00.000-07:00

CAJE meeting TONIGHT!     

Monday May 5th at 7pm.

AT the  NEW LOCATION for our May meetings:

The Unitarian Church at 421 S. Farwell.  We will be meeting in the basement and the
assumption is that we enter on the side of the church.  A sign will be placed on the
entrance door with the name of our group.

April Update

2008-04-28T11:34:00.000-07:00

Tonight’s meeting will be at 7pm at the Congregational Church as usual.  Things are
falling into place for the next phase of our work.

In the coming weeks we will be meeting at a different location and meetings in May
will be bi-weekly.  We will continue to be in touch with each other by phone and
email as we work on the next phase.

So for tonight; same time and place.  Next time and place will be announced soon. 


And don't forget to:

*Keep your Mondays open. 
*Keep circulating those petitions. 
*Keep writing editorials to the Leader Telegram. 

*Call and write the reps and keep up the pressure.  Let your representatives know
that you are watching them and expect them to keep the best interest of their
constituents at heart. 

*Talk to your friends and neighbors about the Jail project and let people know what
we are facing.  Amazingly I still meet people every day who don’t know about the
impending jail and are horrified when they hear of it.  Our most important moment on
this project is still to come and we’ll need lots of supporters to rally round.  If
people are interested in any further rallies for our cause, or similar action, and
they are not on our list, get their email addresses and we’ll notify them when the
time comes.  They don’t have to come to every meeting in order to come to a rally.
Some people are willing to show up for a rally but don’t have time to come to
meetings. 

Everyone’s efforts are appreciated and every action you take, big or small, matters.
This is a grass roots effort and we are struggling for the beauty and quality of
life of our town.  Remind your neighbors and your representatives that the town
belongs to all of us.

Pray for spring and keep up the good fight! 

Emily Beach

meeting update

2008-04-14T08:59:00.000-07:00

A Reminder to everyone that CAJE will be meeting Monday evening, as usual, at 7pm at the first Congregational Church.

Last week we reviewed our work so far and talked about strategies for the next couple of months.

** Our current focus should clearly be on getting our point of view across to the City Council, while our opponents are doing the same. It is important that our council members hear the voices of a large number of their constituents. I think I can even say, a large majority of their constituents, after the enthusiastic responses that all of us had from people we met while knocking on doors during the week before elections. So it is extremely important that we all send thoughtful messages to our City Council reps. now as they are considering whether or not to vote to rezone the property next to the waterfront for a jail. We, of course, are hoping that they will not rezone the property, thereby necessitating that the jail be moved elsewhere.

We decided that we would, at tomorrow's meeting, be considering the positions of each of the City Council and County Board members with the intention of making sure that each one has heard our message.

Ken indicated to us that he is going to be bringing up the suggestion of an amendment to the County Board at his first meeting as a supervisor. This will be to introduce allowing the public the opportunity to speak for at least 3 minutes each on topics of their concern to the County Board before the meetings begin. Up to now, no one other than county board members has been allowed to speak at these meetings. Those of you who attended our first rally will recall that we were warned before entering the board room that we were not allowed to speak at all. Ken would like to change that and I think we all applaud him for this bold move.

The next County Board meeting will be on this coming April 15th, for those who would like to attend. We will all be watching with interest to see if the County Board will choose to listen to its public by accepting Ken's suggestion.

I have been notified that CAJE will need to find an alternative meeting place for May 2, 5, and 19 as the church, which has been very generous to us with meeting space, does have another function for the space on those dates. If anyone has any suggestions or leads on another space, that information would be most welcome.

Kudos go to all who worked tirelessly on getting out the word during the campaigns and all those who have worked on petitions. They just keep coming in, and I plan to have the names counted by tomorrow evening.

Ned and I did a tour of the existing jail on Friday, and it was indeed an eye opener. Clearly something needs to be done, but whereas somewhat bigger and/or more organized may be in order, huge is not better, and I also still firmly believe that if we have a new building that it does not need to be on the waterfront in our historic neighborhood.

I am also more convinced than ever that jail is not the appropriate place for either a mental health facility or a rehab. center and indeed neither is likely to happen with the 20K that they have set aside for programing by the time they build a new 60 million jail. Buildings don't rehabilitate people or give them jobs when they get out of jail, nor do they prevent people from returning to jail.

It is my personal opinion that what funds we have should be spent on programs to treat those with mental illnesses and addictions outside of the jail environment, to increase the ankle bracelet program which seems to be working well according to the Lieutenant who gave us the tour, and to provide work training and jobs for inmates upon release. If we were to do this it is my belief that far fewer secure beds would be needed.

Keep up the good fight.
See you all Monday evening.

from an email by Emily Beach

Jail Design Guide

2008-04-10T12:38:00.000-07:00

For those who just can’t get enough to read or need help getting to sleep at night.

Here's the Jail Design Guide for small & medium size jails.... put out by US Department of Justice National Institute of Corrections......

Chapter 3 deals with Major Design Considerations >>Item #1 (pg 38) talks specifically to site location.....

On page 44 > I quote >>>> “....In general, the jail should not be near a school, a housing area, a church, or a recreation area” I think someone missed that in our design ,,,,

There is also a section that talks about determining needs ... establishing costs (including operations) ... involving community etc...

I makes good reading and would be beneficial to all concerned
Ken

Ken Fulgione
County Board Supervisor Dirtict 22

Ken@Fulgione.net
715-577-4197

New County Board Members!

2008-04-01T20:51:00.001-07:00

We have won 3 new seats and one incumbent!!! Ken Fulgione, Ardyth D. Krause, and John Prince are going to be new County Board Supervisors, and Tammy Schraufnagel is back in.

Ted Barr and Eric Zeegers made an amazing show of votes, though not quite enough to win this time. Hope you'll try again next time and I'm sure we'll all be supporting you again. The number of votes for these gentlemen says something in itself though for our cause.

Everyone did an amazing job all these many past weeks. And we all deserve this joy of the victories. But, there is still alot of work to do. We're not there yet.

See you all next Monday evening, with bells on!!

"Referendum" by Electoral Process

2008-03-30T18:59:00.000-07:00

Local elections on Tuesday April 1 will have an impact on jail plans. Please spread the word, write down the names you want to vote for, and take a friend...

election info

Public Access TV Discussions

2008-03-30T16:36:00.000-07:00

These were originally broadcast on Eau Claire Community TV.

Eau Claire Jail Expansion History

County Board and our ever expanding jail

Cost of the Jail, Alternatives, and new Data

2008-03-28T20:50:00.000-07:00

A personal message from Emily Fleisher Beach:

As we all know, and as was mentioned at the CAJE meeting last night, City Councilman Brandon Buchanan has declared himself to be completely in our court in terms of where he stands on the "No Jail on Our Waterfront" issue. He joined us at our last rally and he will be of great help to us in the upcoming voting when the city council has to decide on whether or not to allow rezoning for the planned mamoth jail downtown. Brandon is running for re-election this coming Tuesday, April 1st. CAJE as an organization can not endorse candidates but as an individual I highly recommend this industrious, young progressive candidate and encourage you to vote for him and ask your friends and neighbors to do the same.

Simultaneously running for county board are; Tammy Schraufnagel, Ken Fulgione, John Prince, Eric Zeegers, Ardyth Krause, and Ted Barr, all of whom are not only fine and qualified candidates but also solid supporters of the No Jail cause.

Brandon Buchanan has lots of yard signs at the Democratic Headquarters. You could stop and pick one up on your way through town. If transportation, or time, is a problem and you'd like one, please call me 552-0179 and I'll be happy to bring one to your home. Or email me and give me your address. Likewise, I know that Ken Fulgione has yard signs and possibly others. All have leaflets and information. Let me know if you would like some information to share with friends and neighbors, and I will connect you with the right person. It would be nice to acknowledge the fine work that these incumbents have done and the good work that we hope the new candidates will be able to do. Emily

2008-03-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

I'm running as a write-in candidate for the county board in District 28, which includes the east side hill. Since the county board refused to allow the citizens a voice by referendum, I have decided that we here in District 28 need an alternative to John B. DeRosier, who has voted repeatedly for the project which, as you know, will cost more and be larger than what is currently proposed.

Please forward this to anyone you might think is interested enough to show up at the polls on Tuesday, April 1. They need to write my name in the appropriate space under the District 28 heading.

Thanks,

Ted Barr

Vote for our town!

2008-03-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

A few of us attended the Televised presentation by Public Access TV of candidates for County Board the other night. This program will be shown soon on PAC TV.

Four pairs of two candidates, each running in opposition to the other, took questions from the audience regarding their qualifications for the job and their views on town issues. Not surprisingly nearly an hour of the 90 minute show was devoted to issues concerning the building of the jail.

The candidates were equally split in their views on the jail. Each of districts 13,19,22 and 26 had one candidate who was "pro jail on the waterfront" and one who was definitely for saving our waterfront from having a huge, expanding jail on it.

The individuals who expressed their support of the waterfront and historic district and are in favour of placing the jail outside of town are:

District 13 - Eric Zeeger,
District 19 - John Prince,
District 22 - Ken Fulgione,
District 26 - Tami Schraufnagel,
District 28 - Ted Barr.

I felt that all four candidates spoke very well defending their positions on the jail this evening and most importantly, expressed their concern for wanting to hear from the public they are running to represent. It was brought up that the public has often, especially of late, felt completely disenfranchised where county issues are concerned. The issue was raised about the lack of will many incumbents seem to have had in holding a referendum for the much debated jail issue, leading their constituents to feel marginalized.

The only incumbent among the four was Tami Schraufnagel whom I very much hope will be voted in again, along with the other three. The reason it is so very important that we get all four of them in to office in this election is that this would give us the much needed majority on the county board to possibly overturn the plans for the current jail site in the Historic Randall Park Neighbourhood, on the water front.

If you live in any of these districts please speak to your friends and neighbours about these fine candidates, and by all means get out and vote on April 1st, or vote by absentee ballot before then if you want to make sure to get your vote in. I believe that the ballots are already at City Hall. Every single vote is extremely important. Individuals in the past have won on margins as small as 3 to 8 votes. You could be the one person who tips it in a direction that will save our town.

The future of the quality of life in our city is truly at stake. Thank you for all you do.

an email from Emily

Jail Advisory Team Meeting Friday

2008-03-12T05:36:00.000-07:00

I wanted to call your attention to a meeting on Friday regarding the future of bicycle/pedestrian/transit issues around the proposed site for the Eau Claire County Jail. The "Community Advisory Team", which supposedly will have input on the outward appearance and public function of the jail/courthouse and the jail/courthouse site, is having a meeting to seek input from their hand-picked community representatives. I have gone to these meetings and advocated for bicycle/pedestrian/transit issues in the past, but now finally they are focusing on those issues with an agenda item. Regardless of your opinion on the jail, we need to make sure they know we value the bike trail that it is proposed to be near, and we want transit and bicycle access to be viable so that they take fewer houses for parking now and in the future.

The remodeling of the current courthouse is also a factor here - for example, they are thinking about having only one public/employee entrance to the courthouse which would face the west parking lot and ultimately discourage people from walking from the downtown.

If you want to come to this meeting and debate the merits of the location, site plan or the exterior of the jail that is fair game too, as you can see on the agenda below. Do not let the early 7:30am time for the meeting discourage you -- that is one way the county has gotten this far.

-- Jeremy Gragert

Great turnout to support City Council

2008-03-11T11:15:00.001-07:00

TERRIFIC RALLY LAST NIGHT! Thanks to all who attended and all your efforts at getting the word out. It paid off. There were about 75 people lining the sidewalk in front of the City Hall last night waving banners and signs to the support of honking cars along the street. Among those present were both County Board and City Council members. The mood of SUPPORTING THE CITY COUNCIL TO STAND UP AND SAVE THE WATERFRONT was certainly evident. It was very festive and yet very serious at the same time.

PETITIONS: Special thanks to all of you who gathered lots and lots of signatures. Our "woman on campus," photographer and student friend, Allison, gathered over 150 by herself and with friends. I saw people everywhere gathering signatures. It was great. And the tally is that we have 713 new ones, as of today, in addition to the 1000 that were gathered a year ago.

CAJE ON TV: There was a wonderful special program on public access TV this past week where Ken Fulgione, Jeff DeGrave, Will Fantle and Maureen Slausson had a round table discussion about the proposed jail and showed us what the implications are for the future of our city if we expand the jail once again in the down town area. I don't know if it is playing again but if you missed it and want to see it, please let me know. I taped it. What struck me was that even though I knew that they were all four on the same team the program was objective, factual, and very informative. It was clear that a lot of time and care went in to the preparation. Great job done.

OK, WHAT'S NEXT? *We're still gathering signatures for another few weeks so keep 'em coming. When you have a bunch either turn them in to Just Local or Eclectica, or call me, Emily, #552-0179 and I can come around and pick them up.

* We are all keeping our eyes and ears open for anything going on in relation to our cause. If you find out about anything, like a meeting happening that might be of significance, a news article about us, anything at all that might be important for us to know about, please let me know and I'll pass the word on. Hope you all saw the coverage on the front page of the Leader Telegram this morning. Now they all must know that we're not giving up.

*Keep the letters to the Editor coming.

*Write the City Council members and urge them to not re-zone the city waterfront property for a huge jail that will only keep expanding in the years to come. Snail mail is good but if what you have time for is email, that's good too. When you send an email it will bear more weight if you sign it with your full name and street address. Here is the string of City Council email addresses.

The link to the city council page.

* COME TO THE NEXT RALLY, if you are getting this email, you will get an announcement of when it will be.

*COME TO THE ORGANIZATIONAL MEETINGS AT THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, AND BRING A FRIEND, EVERY MONDAY AT 7 PM. SEE YOU THERE. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO.

from an email via emily with photos from jeremy

Keeping the Pressure On

2008-03-11T11:07:00.000-07:00

Front Page in Tuesdays Leader Telegram.

Also a great "It seems to me" by Maureen Slauson.

And will you take a moment to vote in the online poll at WEAU?

Which site plan is it?

2008-03-10T17:35:00.000-07:00

As a part owner of Just Local Food Cooperative, I have taken a keen interest in the jail proposals. I hope this letter can clarify how this plan is negatively impacting our ability to plan for successful growth of our downtown grocery store.

We moved our grocery to the location on First Avenue, a former food distribution center, for many reasons, among them: the location along the river, adjacent to a neighborhood and the University, across from the regional bike trail, and to be a part in of a unique small business district revitalizing downtown Eau Claire. While I personally oppose the jail plan as proposed, I write today with concern on how the small businesses are being treated. I have spent the past two years trying to figure out how our buildings fit into the jail plan. And as of this week, they still don't know!

As a contrast to this, the Historic Ivey house on Second is shown standing in all scenarios.

An aerial view released March 4 shows no laundromat, no grocery store buildings, but a small parking lot on corner is the same, about 20 spaces. This, of course, is "just a drawing", but it shows the Eclectica building, theater, and others quite realistically. And it isn't consistent with other drawings that show either the laundromat and grocery existing; no laundromat but with grocery; or just a parking lot. Which is it, County Planners?

According to the site plan released Feb 27, the laundromat is gone and the 770-774 buildings are shown standing, but ominously titled "parking 18 current 46 future". Look closely at the drawing and you will see that they are tearing down the laundromat, a long-standing well-appreciated service in town, with customers like the fire department and fire victims, for exactly six parking spaces.

The buildings occupied currently by Just Local Food Cooperative equal six parking spots too, Lannigans Heating and Cooling six, as well as an adjacent building with retail and housing, would then count for the remaining 10 parking spaces to be added along the river.

In this aerial view from just a few weeks ago, Feb 14, we see the buildings of 770-774 intact. What changed? The Eclectica and Theatre buildings are still remarkably realistic, but the buildings on First have changed. Will they reappear in April? Also, in that Feb08 County update the map inside again shows the buildings standing and overlaid with parking! Which is it!?!

It appears that nothing is clear when it comes to these properties. The county claims the landlord is willing to sell. The owners were willing to sell to the grocery co-op at a fair market price, then the county announced their expansion plans and started buying nearby properties at above market prices. Of course the landlord is willing to wait to make more money, and won't invest in buildings slated for parking spaces in the meantime. The grocery, growing, needs small but serious investments in the buildings to grow through the hot summer season. Without a clear plan from the county, the grocery is forced to close or move at their own expense. Is the County obligated to compensate individuals and businesses directly affected by their expansion plans?

My request is simple:

Will the county be ripping these buildings down for parking?

If so, please tell the businesses located in them to move so they can survive, now.

If not, please officially declare the buildings off the future County campus map and allow whatever businesses choose to locate along the beautiful Eau Claire riverfront to invest in the properties without fear of them being torn down for parking spaces.

Sincerely,
aaron ellringer

Sign the Petition Online

2008-03-08T21:47:00.000-08:00

Sarah has created an online version of the Jail Petition that folks can sign. Since this is being combined with our other petitions, you should not sign both this and a paper petition, nor should you go to this site if you already signed the 2006 petition.

Rally at 6PM on Monday

2008-03-06T14:20:00.000-08:00

Citizens Plan Rally at City Hall to deliver Support Petitions

The Citizens for Accountability in Jail Expansion is in the process of collecting additional signatures opposing the current location of the County Jail and supporting other alternatives. The petitions are available in several locations throughout Eau Claire and at the website: www.eccaje.blogspot.com Citizens can get a petition to pass or to sign by calling 552-0179. Volunteers will also be collecting signatures at various times at the Public Library, US Post Office & downtown coffee shops. More details available.

At this time there are well over 1200plus signatures that have been collected. Those signatures collected by Monday will be delivered to the City Clerk to be forwarded to the City Manger and City Council after the Rally in front of City Hall at 6:00PM on Monday March 10th.

The Rally at 6PM on Monday in front of City Hall is being held to Support of the City Comprehensive Plan and to let our City Council know that many citizens will support their efforts to oppose the location of the expanding county jail on our downtown river front. The Rally is attempting to raise awareness of this issue as it relates to the city council.

CAJE is trying to let citizens know that this issue will be coming before the City Council soon for required re-zoning. CAJE and other citizens in Eau Claire believe that the City can and should tell the County to go back to the planning boards and select one of the many other alternatives available for the jail location. The Rally will also stress the importance of letting the city council and the plan commission members know how you feel about the heritage we will leave for Eau Claire by selecting this location for an expanding Jail facility.

Citizens, Taxpayer & voters can make a difference and this issue is not over until the City Council votes on the required re-zoning of this area. The Rally on Monday is intended to focus attention on just that issue.

For additional information about this press release please feel free to contact Ken .

The Question ~ The $64 Million Dollar Question

2008-03-05T15:46:00.000-08:00

Watch Cable Channel 11 on CTV ~ Saturday at Noon, Sunday At 5pm & Monday night at 10pm

Will Fantle, Jeff DeGrave, Maureen Slauson & Ken Fulgione put together a panel discussion about some of the issues and concerns surrounding the proposed new Jail project called “The Question ~ The $64 Million Dollar Question"

“We tried to present this with as much open and full disclosure of information as we were able.” Ken Fulgione said ..... “We all talk too much on this panel.... but we did the best we could... Hope you find it accurate and informative

The program is set up as a panel discussion on
-how we got to where we are (a study in expansion & mis-communication or lack there of)
-concerns with the proposals presented &alternatives that still need to be discussed
-concerns about financial impact & how it might effect new programs just being started as well as a discussion about staffing needs yet to be presented
-discussion on how the jail fails to relate to the city’s comprehensive plan for downtown & the neighborhoods and why the county refused to participate
-Recommendations for what community members can do and what is next on the agenda for this project

PASS THE WORD

The program will replay Saturday at Noon (12:00pm), Sunday At 5pm & Monday night at 10pm on cable channel 11 thanks to Community TV

Dear City Council Members and Eau Claire press

2008-03-04T14:39:00.000-08:00

Dear City Council Members and Eau Claire press,

I would like to bring your attention to a report released at the very end of February by the US Department of Justice entitled Eau Claire County Local Justice System Assessment (US Department of Justice, National Institute of Corrections, Jail Division, NIC TA-08J1010). According to the report, it was commissioned by the Eau Claire County Board of Supervisors and the Eau Claire County Criminal Justice Collaborating Council. You can read the entire report before many members of the County Board, including an appendix. For anybody interested in Eau Claire's jail issue, the report is informative, engaging and easy to read. It also appears damning.

In current discussions regarding the jail, the generally accepted premise has been that the need for increased capacity is obvious. But, according to the report, this is hardly clear. Further, in highlighting the paucity of information on the jail and the jailed, the report explains that plenty of data is available but little has been done with it. This, in turn, explains the public's lack of knowledge, and thus participation, in the entire jail expansion debate. The report clearly suggests that the county has too little information for it to know what it needs in terms of a new and expanded jail facility. In fact, an overall tenor of the report is that Eau Claire is jailing more people than the state or any of the other counties in their comparative analyses.

According to the report, the authors/consultants were in town on 19th-21st of February 2008 to conduct assessments of jail capacity and occupancy (page 14), the very day that the County Board of Supervisors voted to pass the first $25 million bond toward the jail. It is inconceivable to me how the county can confidently state that $59.1 million will fix the problem when, as the report demonstrates, it is clear that they do not even understand the problem. Unless I am missing something fundamental, it is nothing short of unbelievable that the county ramrods the jail through before examining the report and openly debating its recommendations. The findings, the questions the report raises, and the recommendations are numerous, extensive and hardly trivial. They include encouraging public involvement in defining the purpose of the jail, tapping into expertise at UW-Eau Claire (Political Science, Criminal Justice and those with information skills), and exploring the various alternatives to incarceration.

Because the county knew that this report was still underway but very near completion at the time of the 20 February Board meeting (a board meeting with up to a hundred anguished citizens in attendance), it will be very difficult to convince our community that the county was trying to be anything other than deceptive. If I were a County Board of Supervisors member, I would be livid to have had this information withheld, voting to spend millions of dollars on a cart before knowing anything about the horse.

Below, I have pasted a few excerpts from my quick reading. These are not intended to take statements out of context, but to provide evidence that jail inadequacy, the apparent driver for the current expansion, is not how discussions should proceed. In fact, the more I consider the report, the more it seems that specific plans for a jail and its expansion are premature. Thus, any talk of WHERE to put the jail is inappropriate when we do not know its purpose. Until the system wide and policy problems are understood and addressed, building a new jail will – as some county supervisors even expressed concern over on 20 February – bring us back to where we are now.

We expect, and hope for, a row when the public learns of this report, its findings and recommendations.

Sincerely,
Paul Kaldjian Dan Drumm

Excerpts 1) "Eau Claire is safe and its people are pretty well behaved (page 18)."

2) "The jail is used to house a wide range of inmate types. It is attempting to do too much. Almost anyone can be admitted. A very wide variety of federal, immigration, out of state, state, and local inmates reside there. It is a mixture of three distinct groups: "people we are afraid of, people we are upset with and people we do not know what to do with (page 19)."

3) "More clearly defining the purpose of the jail is a first step in managing the flow into the jail and the length of stay. This will help define the number and composition of the jail population. Until and unless this is done, the jail will remain crowded (page 19)."

4) "The predominant view, the predominant strategy for coping with the growing workload has been to seek additional resources, add jail beds, and add program capacity. This represents a near singular strategy aimed at trying to outrun growth by adding capacity. But the system is up against substantial resource limits and the strategy is coming under increased scrutiny because, to some, it does not seem to be working (page 20)."

5) "A first conceptual trap has been the view that jail crowding is "the problem." A related notion is the view that jail crowding is "the Sheriff's problem". It turns out that jail crowding really just a symptom. It is a symptom of problems within the larger justice system. Success requires a system-wide approach. One must literally go outside the perceived "problem" in order to solve it (page 20/21)"

6) "Some of the people who were interviewed seem to believe that a new jail will "solve the problem". In fact, a new jail, by itself, may not change very much. New bed space may be filled quickly. It is also possible that the new emerging programs will expand the total number of people under correctional supervision, also fill to capacity, and have very little impact on the number of people in jail (page 24)."

7) "Recommendations include increased public participation and better analysis of existing data to provide information on the jail population, its characteristics and needs, put into a proper form, analyzed and routinely reported out. . . . Understanding these population dynamics is essential to understanding why the number of people in jail is increasing (or falling) (page 29)."

8) "Between 2002 and 2006, the Number of Index Crimes Reported to law enforcement in Eau Claire County decreased -14%. . . . . When these numbers are adjusted to account for increases in the countywide population during this period, the decreases are even larger (page 11)."

9) "Adult arrests in Eau Claire County increased by 24% during this period. This is in sharp contrast to the declining Index crime rates in the County, and in contrast to the statewide adult arrest trends (page 12)."

10) "The Eau Claire County crime prone age group (age 15-24) can be expected to peak in 2010, then decline substantially by the year 2020. This age cohort is expected to grow at about one half the rate of the general county population through 2030 (page 12)."

11) " The basic message: These trends do not support the view that the general County population has become more criminogenic. Instead, the increase in the demand for criminal justice services appears to stem from changes in the response of the criminal justice system. In conjunction with the other analyses that have been prepared, it appears that a larger number of people have been placed under correctional supervision, under more stringent behavioral requirements, and for longer periods of time (page 12/13)."

12) "Utilization of the Jail bed space resource is not well understood by justice system officials, general officials of county and city governments, or the public. The jail data was not organized to permit analysis. It was difficult to determine how the jail space is being used. The classification system is a mystery. Bookings and length of stay of the various inmate types are not being analyzed. The prior studies that have been done have been uniformly weak in detailing and describing the various subtypes of inmates in jail and how much space they occupy (page 19)"

letter to L-T editor

2008-03-03T14:46:00.000-08:00

Dear Editor:

In response to your editorial on Sunday, March 2 (“Jail Foes’ Protests Too Late To Matter”), apparently you have accepted the County Board’s version of what happened without checking with the citizens themselves. I was present at one of the first “community meetings” to which the proponents of the jail expansion are referring. That meeting was not held for the purpose of informing citizens and seeking their input. Mr. Draxler and Mr. Willett showed the group a set of optional plans and told us what was planned. I had to ask three times if the decision had already been made to build this jail expansion. Finally, when I demanded a “Yes” or a “No” answer, we were told that the decision had already been made, that there was nothing that could be done about that, and that we would have our opportunity to address our concerns at a later date. Very strong objections to the plan were raised by many persons at this meeting. To my knowledge, these objections were never recorded or passed back to the County Board, nor was there ever a “later date” at which we could raise these objections. In this whole process we have been told three or four times that any objections we wanted to raise were too early in the process and that they should be raised later; later never came. Each time, we were simply told it was too late. Did they even record the objections? This whole process has been staff-driven, and the staff have managed to avoid a full disclosure to the taxpayers while giving the impression that taxpayers had had the opportunity for objections all through the process and that those who did object and who object now are just a bunch of malcontents who do not express the opinion of the taxpayers. Where in this process were the taxpayers of Eau Claire County informed regarding the means to pay for this expansion? The County Board voted to raise the property tax levy by 15% and to spend a very large chunk of our property tax money, for the next ten to thirty years, without citizen input on that matter. The $59.1 million is just the beginning. The total cost, just to service that debt, will be $92 million. That will not include the full cost of equipping the buildings. And how will we pay for the 30 new staff for the jail?

Although a referendum is not required, because the approved amount is below the level which would require a referendum, a motion for a voluntary referendum was defeated by the County Board. There is no wish to provide a full disclosure to the voters or to present the whole case to the persons who are paying for it.. My strongest objections are to the lack of transparency on this matter and to the County Board’s disregard for any other factors than what the proponents of this jail want. I dislike deception; I dislike gross manipulation; and I dislike being treated with disdain as a voter and a taxpayer. By the way, it is not too late to object. The County Board still has the opportunity to alter the plans and truly involve taxpayers in the process.

Nick Smiar

letter to L-T editor

2008-03-03T14:43:00.000-08:00

Hi Tom,

I wanted to point out a few things related to your editorial's theme: that the public did not object to the county jail project in time, and the public was given plenty of opportunities to have input.

From my perspective, as someone who followed the jail project closely from summer 2005 to now, the county has been fairly bad at listening to input from the general public. Early in the process the county officials would often say that input given was coming too prematurely, since the county had not entered the phase of the process for that type of input yet. Then, at a later point in time, that very same type of input would be brushed aside, when the county would say the input is coming too late, and that particular aspect of the decision was a done deal. And that is if a citizen managed to attend and speak at two public meetings on the issue -- not an easy task.

The county largely only had an interest in hearing from established groups and community leaders, such as businesses interests, and failed to take into account input from the general public. Often, these presentations only encouraged questions to clarify what was already planned, rather than input on the future or objections to past decisions. Few members of the general public got presentations or were invited to meetings or serve on committees related to the jail issue. Few if any established organizations were willing to stand up to the county or felt it was within their purview to comment on the jail issue. I saw one presentation in Spring 2007 while on the board of Downtown Eau Claire, Incorporated, and even a group like that had no interest whatsoever in providing official input on the jail plan. I had to approach Frank Draxler (Project manager for the jail) in order to get the county to give a presentation to the Student Senate in spring 2007 which they would not have done otherwise.

I am a bit surprised that your editorial ignores, just as the county board did, that over 1,000 signatures were gathered in the summer of 2006 from across Eau Claire County objecting to the proposed location for the jail. The Student Senate, while I served on, in November 2005 passed a resolution objecting to the current plans for the project at the time mainly its location that would destroy low-income student housing and put area businesses at risk. I count these are fairly substantial, and early, objections to the jail project but your editorial chooses to ignore them.

Finally, I find it disturbing that anyone would call this jail project a "done deal" when construction clearly has not even begun. The main strategy that the county has been using to get this jail through is repeating the theme that this jail is a done deal, even when it is not and that tactic has been utilized on this project for years.

As the circulation numbers of the Leader-Telegram likely show, many citizens of this community would rather cancel the newspaper than read editorials like the one you just wrote. Who wants to read editorials that tell them they can't make a difference, and discourages them from taking part in further decision making on this issue? As a result, when something is accurately reported on or well editorialized in the L-T there are fewer people to read it.

Volume One, unfortunately, is far more convinced that the jail is a done deal, to the point of not even caring to meaningfully report on it. So I do thank you and the L-T for at least discussing and reporting on the issue.

Jeremy

letter to L-T editor

2008-03-02T14:47:00.000-08:00

Tom,
Your editorial in Sunday’s paper was wrong & miss leading.... in fact it was an example of very bad journalism as it now creates a more mis-informed public at a crucial point in time.

The City Council (that is that body of elected officials who represent the best interests of the city of Eau Claire - you know the ones who have public input on Mondays and face their constituents on a regular basis) – the City Council will have to re-zone the area that the county wants to build on... The Plan Commission will also have to take up the matter of changing the Comprehensive Plan to allow for the construction of a Jail & other future county plans in the Courthouse district in opposition to the comprehensive plan as it now stands and it’s intent. When will you mention those points????

You asked the question of where was the public during all of the county’s march toward placing the jail across the street from the bike trail ...(is that better?) on the riverfront? Well, most of Eau Claire was listening to the city talk about a new commitment to our river front development. They were attending Phoenix park events, hanging out at a restaurant downtown & watching the debate over when new projects would begin to make better use of the riverfronts. They were getting excited about a new commitment to liven up our waterfronts with restaurants, music venues, boutiques and unique shopping experiences. Some of them may have either been involved with or heard about the city’s 2 year effort to develop an award winning comprehensive plan that also promoted those same efforts. Unless they were directly involved in the development of that plan for the city, they may not have noticed that the county had refused to attend and turned its back on the opportunity to talk about their Jail plans during city’s planning sessions.

So Tom, maybe you should really be asking where has the county been the past 3 or 4 years? The downtown direction has been clear. The intent was documented and the effort was begun ..... but the county has not been paying attention to what the members of the city of Eau Claire have been saying.. The location they will be asking the city to re-zone for their future growth plans, the 4 to 5 story expanding jail, the new courthouse and the 3 story parking ramp, was not intended to hold all of that. The public read the plan, saw the direction the city was going and “assumed” the county would have heard this as well. You put the onus on the public when you should actually put it on the county. Where have they been?

I believe you need to correct the facts of your editorial. First of all we did not have a “protest” march on the county board. I helped organize it Tom. It was clearly stated as an AWARENESS RALLY. We were trying to put the focus on this issue as it will approach the city council in the near future. Then, your question of the week about referendums clouded the issue. Sure it was a disgrace that they would not give the taxpayers a change to vote on this.... but that was not what people were talking about the most. It was the focus the LT decided to follow. Either you don’t get it or you were intentionally mis-directing the discussion.

How many letters you have received about the jail issue that you have not yet published? And now your bogus editorial has done another dis-service to your readers by mis-informing, mis-accusing and mis-directing the issue once again. . If you can’t figure out what is going on right now ..... how can you expect the public to stay abreast?

Not once have you reported the procedures that still need to occur with regard to the construction of the jail. You have not reported that the city will eventually be taking up this question and will need to re-zone this property before it can continue. Without the re-zoning of this land, the jail can not be built. You have not reported about the possibility of a protest petition from the public around the re-zoning of the land that could force a required super majority vote on the council. Now who is falling down on their job and will later say that the public should have been there to stop this when they could have?

You have a responsibility to keep people informed. Something is clouding your vision.

Ken Fulgione

River front Jail update

2008-02-24T17:39:00.000-08:00

We had a very successful rally and meeting at the courthouse on Wednesday.

I want congratulate and thank all of you who attended and have supported this issue so far.

Keep up the letters and articles.

Volume 1 has some very good space devoted by readers to the Riverfront Jail. Stop by and leave a comment or two with them as well.

You have just begun. First we needed to reach the media and use them to make it known that saving our waterfront from this jail project is important to many many members of our community. We still need to let other community members, who agree with us, know ..... that now is the time....The issue is now in focus ..... and we need more people to speak up ...... or be satisfied with the heritage they will be leaving.

We also have successfully begun to establish our own communication and awareness network. We can not rely on the traditional media to notify and inform... let alone understand the issue ... or clearly report the message. We have begun to set up a strong email forwarding system. Please continue to make it grow and work for us.

If you have the skill and the time... you can help this communication system grow by forwarding pertinent emails and calls to action. Thank you.

Our next meeting is Monday at the 1st Congregational Church across from Randall Park. At 7PM... We welcome supporters who oppose the location of the Jail upon our Riverfront and we will use the time to review future plans, and update you on the issues. Bring 2 friends.

I wish we could say we have affected our County Board and our job is done.... but the county board is not our focus. The City Council are the defenders of our riverfront. The County just finally recognized the need for a jail and with disregard for our city efforts they just want to plop it down and move on with county business. The city council passed the Comprehensive Plan and we need to show them that there is support for them to stand up to the county and tell them the Jail does not belong on the riverfront.

Please try to attend Monday's meeting so we can outline our next steps. You are doing a great job. Bring 3 friends and it will be even better.

originated as an email by Ken

County Board Meeting Wedndesday!

2008-02-18T10:26:00.000-08:00

– Your Voice is needed –

The decorative Riverfront Downtown Jail Project is moving forward & your HELP is needed. This Wednesday evening there will be an OPEN House at the County Courthouse at 6PM to view the current plans and meet the County Board supervisors, as well as the architects and planners. Following the Open House, the County Board will be voting whether to allocate $25 million dollars towards advancing this project forward.

We are marching on the courthouse this Wednesday.

Meet us at 5:45pm, Wednesday February 20, at the corner of First and Grand Avenues (also called Peace Park, in the shadow of the proposed riverfront jail). We will walk together to the open house at the nearby Courthouse to make our collective voices strong: NO JAIL DOWNTOWN.

Even if you can't make it early, please attend the meeting and speak out! You are needed to help stop this project while we still can.

Even though agendas for the Wednesday County Board Meeting have not reached the board members as of Tuesday morning, the agenda when received will call for a vote on approving a $25 Million dollar bonding issue to continue the Jail project.

The City has not yet had an opportunity to approve or reject the re-zoning of the riverfront property that the county wants to use to build it’s 4 story jail. There is a planned Protest Petition being filed with the City Council when this re-zoning reaches the Council for discussion & vote.

The Citizens for Accountability in Jail Expansion feel that the county board should table it’s bonding effort until it is known if the city will change it’s comprehensive plan for downtown improvements on the riverfront and allow property proposed for the Jail to be re-zoned.

How can you help?

Meet in peace park (first and grand) this Wedndesday at 5:45pm.
Come later to the Wednesday meeting at the County Board.
Call your friends & neighbors about this & ask them to attend
Email this website to everyone you know who might want to see this project halted (click the envelope at the end of this message to email this page to your friends now!)
Put this announcement on your facebook or myspace page, add the rally to your calendar!
Call & email all of the county board supervisors
Call AND email all of the city council members
Call & email all of the Plan Commission Members
Call & email Mike Huggins the City Manager
Write a letter to the Leader Telegram opposing the re-zoning and urging the County & the City to gain its senses

We have several sample letters posted on this site. Feel free to cut and paste. The important thing is that you write or call with the simple message: No Jail Downtown!

Jail study group seeks public input

2008-02-18T05:59:00.000-08:00

A public meeting meant to give input to a group studying Eau Claire County's justice system will begin at 9 a.m. Thursday in Room G034 of the courthouse, 721 Oxford Ave.

The National Institute of Corrections, which is part of the U.S. Department of Justice, has scheduled a community forum and plans to reveal research results.

Today and Wednesday, NIC officials plan to visit with local officials, including those who work in the jail.

The study is expected to provide advice on constructing the county's new jail; work is scheduled to begin in the fall.

above from the leader telegram

The information below came from Bruce Willett and Tom McCarty.

Date: February 18, 2008

From: Bruce Willett, County Board Chairman Tom McCarty, County Administrator

To: County Board Members City Council Members Mike Huggins, City Manager Mike Felton, Department of Corrections

Re: NIC Justice System Analysis; Community Meeting

The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) will be conducting a Local Justice System Assessment of Eau Claire County February 19-21, 2008. The assessment process will include interviews with key criminal justice policy makers and support groups associated with the jail, which will be conducted February 19-20th at the Eau Claire County courthouse, room 2532. On Thursday, February 21st the NIC consultants will be conducting a community meeting (9am-3pm) in room G034 of the courthouse to present their findings and hold an open forum discussion. You are invited to attend and participate in this discussion (a tentative agenda is enclosed). Also enclosed are four background items that have been forwarded by the NIC team for review prior to the interviews/forum. Copies of these materials will also be available in the Eau Claire County Administration office. Please contact the Administration office if you have questions regarding this project, and with your intent to attend (RSVP’s appreciated, but not required).

Phone: (715) 839-4835 Fax: (715) 839-6243 Email: admin@co.eau-claire.wi.us

Tentative Agenda

Community Meeting Eau Claire County Local Justice System Assessment Thursday, February 21, 2008 Eau Claire County Courthouse, Room G034 9am-3pm

1. Introduction of National Institute of Corrections (NIC) Consultants

2. Review of Proposed Agenda

3. Brief Overview of Services Provided by the NIC

4. Jail and Justice System Overview

a. Admissions and length of stay

b. Agency impacts on jail population

c. Managing jail (over)crowding

5. Jail Population and Bed Space

6. Seven Key Justice System Decision Points / Discussion

7. Justice System Trends in Eau Claire County

8. Comparison of ECC Justice System to Other Wisconsin Counties

9. Summary of Consultant Findings and Observations / Discussion

10. Major Choices and Challenges for Eau Claire County

11. Recommended Planning Process

12. Correctional Sanctions and Services Matrix

13. Consultant Recommendation

14. Action Planning / Discussion

15. Closing by Eau Claire County Officials

16. Adjourn

make signs!

2008-02-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

(an idea of what one person can do)

I made up a bunch of the no jail downtown signs on the tongue depressors and handed them out after the Obama Rally at 1st and Water. People were very supportive, I went through 200 in no time. It will help to inform about the blog. I left some at just local as well.

Joel

Leader Telegram article Feb 16

2008-02-17T07:34:00.000-08:00

Do you take issue with this article, with the headline, or the opinions expressed?

Make comments at the Leader Telegram website, contact the reporter or write a letter to the editor.

Jail, courthouse referendum not likely to happen
By Andrew Dowd Leader-Telegram staff

Some citizens are asking for a halt or referendum on Eau Claire County's $59.1 million jail and courthouse remodeling project, but County Board members said that's not likely.

Board member Howard Ludwigson supported holding a referendum on the project and got the County Board to vote on his proposal during the June meeting where the budget project was approved.

"The County Board turned it down," he said. "It's not that the County Board didn't have that opportunity."

The Board voted 17-10 against the referendum on June 19. To overturn that, a board member who voted against the referendum would have to request it be reconsidered, or a referendum request would have to be attached to upcoming bond issues.

Even if that happened, Ludwigson said the board's membership hasn't changed enough to request a referendum, though he feels that's still the way to go.

Kathleen Clark and other board members argued that most people did not attend open meetings and information sessions held by the County Board and don't know as much about the project as County Board members. She added that county government is not subject to the same referendum requirements as public schools.

"There is nothing in the state statutes requiring us to have a referendum," she said.

A 1992 local government spending cap does limit how much counties can borrow, but that can be overridden by a three-quarters vote of the County Board. In the case of the jail and remodeling project, the $59.1 million cost put the project just under the limit of about $60 million that would have required a referendum.

Citizens can petition for an advisory referendum, but Ludwigson said it's doubtful enough signatures could be gathered in time.

To get on the April ballot, a referendum question would have to be approved by Tuesday, county Clerk Janet Loomis said.

A special election for a referendum could be held, Ludwigson said, but that would cost a few thousand dollars if not done on a regular election day.

Bond issue reaching board Wednesday

Construction of the new jail is slated to begin in fall, and the County Board will vote Wednesday on the first $25 million of borrowing. The county originally planned to borrow $10 million in 2008, but wanted to take advantage of current low interest rates.

Clark, a member of the Finance and Budget Committee, said the recommendation is to borrow $25 million this year, $25 million the next and $9.1 million in 2010.

Lower interest rates also are expected to lower the final cost of the jail to $92 million when interest is included, Clark said. Previous projections put the final price tag at $99.5 million.

Community members have lobbed allegations that the county is underestimating costs of the jail and will go above the $59.1 million approved construction costs.

In a letter to city and county politicians and the media, Eau Claire resident Paul Kaldjian wrote that the "cost of the jail has been disingenuously underestimated at $59.1 million."

However, county Project Manager Frank Draxler said that is the ceiling set by the County Board, and the project cannot go over that price, but some parts of the plan could be scaled back if they are too expensive.

"We're not to exceed 59.1, period," he said. "If things cost more, they'll have to be cut."

After years of studies and multiple votes, Draxler noted the County Board has approved building the jail between the courthouse and First Avenue.

At the June 19 meeting, by a vote of 16-11 the County Board approved a new jail and courthouse remodeling. Spending $59.1 million for construction passed 15-12. Board member Tami Schraufnagel switched her vote.

Since then, those decisions have been reinforced by other votes including approval of an architect, construction manager, buying property for the new jail and a higher tax rate in the 2008 county budget.

facebook / myspace

2008-02-17T07:01:00.000-08:00

Hey - don't forget to tell your friends through your facebook and myspace pages! Let's rally Eau Claire!

action

2008-02-16T21:43:00.000-08:00

As of now, one of the most important actions you can take is educating yourself and your neighbors as to the impact and scope of the jail project. Once you've formed an opinion, the next greatest thing you can do is share your opinion with our elected leaders. The County Board still has the authority (duty) to reconsider the matter. Their names and emails are listed on this site under "decisionmakers". The Eau Claire City Council also has a chance to weigh in on the matter when they are asked by the County to change the zoning for whichever properties they end up purchasing. So it would also be helpful for you to contact them. It is entirely appropriate to contact all of these folks, no matter where you live, as you do not need to be a constituent in their "district" per se in order to share your opinion. Your voice does count, this is not a "done deal" as some have said! And by all means, if you are motivated, join us at our next meeting! We'd love to have you!

Dear City Council members:

2008-02-16T21:41:00.001-08:00

I spent time on the original "Citizens Advisory Council" to the County Jail project. Bob Von Haden was also a member of this group.

We met several times over a 6 or 7 month period for about two hours each meeting.

I seems to me that "Advisory" must mean listening to the "powers that be" advise us on what things are happening between each meeting! That is exactly what happened.

Our advise was asked only when it came time to "sell" this project to the public. How can we best talk the public into buying into this very expensive project??

Objections to the location of this new jail received not a listen!! It seemed to be a "done deal"!!

This is not the way a democracy should work.

I ask, at this late date, for the city council to vote for a County-wide referendum on this Jail project and not simply rubber stamp the approval of this Hundred Million plus dollar project!

Thank you for your attention!

Thanks much,

Keep on hammerin with H4H!

Peace,
Jerry

To: County Board Members:

2008-02-16T21:40:00.000-08:00

I spent time on the original "Citizens Advisory Council" to the County Jail project. We met several times over a 6 or 7 month period for about two hours each meeting.

It seems to me that "Advisory" must mean listening to the "powers that be" advise us on what things were happening between each meeting! That is exactly what happened.

Our advise was asked only when it came time to "sell" this project to the public. How can we best talk the public into buying into this very expensive project?? We were asked.

Expanding the TIP program was suggested but not taken seriously as a way to affect the building of a new jail. Suggestions of other programs: Mental Health Court, Youth Drug Court, and others were also discussed by some folks. Again, none were taken seriously as having any possible effect on the size for a new jail!

Objections to the location of this new jail received not a listen!! It seemed to be a "done deal"!! We were told that the location was a "done deal" because the County Board had voted on it!

Costs were discussed at length and that committee decided that if such a project were to be done, it should be done completely, all at once. The cost would have been in the neighborhood of 120 million dollars. However the cost of doing all of the buildings piecemeal over a fifteen or twenty year period could not even be estimated other than a guess of at least twice the 120 million.

Apparently the County Board decided to go with only the jail portion so the cost could be held under 60 million dollars. Our committee discussed that option also. Members of the committee discussed and knew that the total cost for just this jail project would probably be about one hundred million dollars. The public has not been told about the one hundred million. Nor has the public been told about the huge extra costs predicted to hire many additional staff people to make this new jail work.

This is not the way a democracy should work. Advisory Committees should have input into the meetings they are asked to attend. The public should have input through a referendum when such large costs are involved which will directly their taxes.

I ask, at this late date, for the County Board to call for a County-wide referendum on this Jail project and not simply rubber stamp the approval of this Hundred Million plus dollar project!

Thank you for your attention!

Peace,

Kenneth G. (Jerry) Foote

Open Letter to City Council President Adler

2008-02-16T07:09:00.000-08:00

Dear Mr. Adler:

I am writing to you to bring to your attention a matter which will come before the City Council in the near future. The Eau Claire County Board has approved the funds for construction of a new jail (sometimes referred to as “courthouse expansion” or “courthouse renovation”). The footprint of the proposed building is a rectangular piece of land extending from the east side of the courthouse building, along Ann Street, to First Avenue. I am sure that you have heard that there is a growing objection from citizens of Eau Claire County regarding the proposed building. The matter which will come before you, in the City Council, is a re-zoning request from the Eau Claire County Board, asking for a zoning variation or change for the construction of this building. I am writing to you to urge you NOT to approve this request.

First, I point out to you that the proposed building is to be built on the flood plain of the Eau Claire River. Construction of such a large and heavy building requires that deep pilings be sunk for support and the ground level be elevated above the flood plain, just as was done for the Royal Credit Union, across the river. Such a raising of the grade will directly affect the entire area around the property. The County building is constructed on the bluff and has firm footings; the proposed extension will not be on firm ground. Despite any assurances from the group which is pushing this project, the approved funds will not cover the necessary preparatory work plus the pilings plus construction of the building. In fact, the approved funds do not cover the proposed building in a completed form. Your approval of the County board’s request will lead to a building fiasco which will have to be remedied, at great expense to the taxpayer. Current estimates, without the pilings (and without the change in ground level) exceed $100 million.

Second, the proposed building is not consistent with the city’s comprehensive plan. In that plan, approved in 2005, one of the overarching themes is “Neighborhood Protection and Improvement: Keep older neighborhoods attractive and vital through improved streets, parks and services, code enforcement, design standards and selective redevelopment.” Although the plan does not address this specific site and although the property directly to the east of the county building is currently a parking lot, the proposed project would expand the footprint of that site, place a large concrete block of a building on the site, affect the flood plain, and bring the building close to the riverfront. All of this affects the historical character of the neighborhood, both in the proposals to acquire property and the indications of future intent to remove houses and buildings which are adjacent to the proposed building.

In the Comprehensive Plan’s chapter on Land Use, some of the relevant objectives are:

“Objective 4 – Established Neighborhoods: Maintain or revive the traditional urban character of the older neighborhoods so that they remain attractive places to live.

Objective 7 –Waterfronts: Improve the visual quality and connections to the Chippewa and Eau Claire Rivers to support appropriate development and enhance the community’s quality of life.

Objective 10 – Parks: Build parks and interconnected greenways to enhance the quality of residential neighborhoods and commercial districts, reflect Eau Claire’s cultural heritage, and honor civic life.

The proposed project is not consistent with the plan. First, the proposed project will alter the character of the neighborhood. Second, it will mar the riverscape, which the city has recently improved with Phoenix Park. The Park “enhances the community’s quality of life.” The proposed project will be a blight on the riverscape. Third, the proposed building will encroach on both the riverfront and the riverfront parkway. Do we really want a jail building right on the border of a parkway?

In the chapter on natural resources are the following objectives:

“River and Stream Shoreline Protection: Work with the Department of Natural Resources to protect the banks and flood plain of the Chippewa and Eau Claire Rivers, as well as Sherman, Lowes and Otter Creeks by enforcing its current flood plain regulations, using natural stream edge protection techniques as described above and by acquiring additional land for public open space. (See also the Parks System Chapter and the Land Use Chapter.)

Greenway Design: Consider environmental issues in the design of linear public parks and other open space along streams or bicycle paths. Determine the basis of any greenway width by specific environmental standards, such as slope percentage, erodible slopes, soil conditions, wetlands, flood plain locations and areas of quality woodlands with their size, area, and species identified. Carefully align bicycle paths in a greenway so as to minimize disruption of the ecology of the site.

River Flood Plain Management: Continue to strictly enforce river and stream flood plain regulations, which are part of the Zoning Code. Land use plans and site development plans will be drawn to protect the streams and accomplish appropriate waterfront development.

It would require more space than I can use here to include relevant objectives from the chapter on Historical Preservation. However, a quick review of the various versions of the proposal will give the reader the very clear impression that historical preservation played no role whatsoever in the proposal for this jail expansion. In fact, the proponents often and in a very flippant fashion would refer to removing or tearing down historic homes and buildings; there was no regard for the neighborhood. The neighborhood was there before the county building. I believe that it has priority.

In the chapter on Downtown Development, there is reference to expanding the county facility; but that is directly followed by the phrase “with respect for the neighborhood.” The proposed building hardly does that. There has been a complete disregard for the neighborhood. I was part of the “Neighborhood Advisory Meetings.” We were told that the whole thing was a “done deal” and that there was “nothing we could do to change it.” I don’t think that that was a wise statement to be making to a group of voters, taxpayers, and neighbors.

I am sure that those pushing the project will find some way to dance around these objectives and make it appear as if the proposed building will comply with the Comprehensive Plan. However, I am hoping that the City Council and the Plan Commission can clearly see that the proposed building does NOT comply with the Comprehensive Plan and cannot be made to comply with it.

I have other objections to this project. Although those objections may not be relevant to the matter which is coming before you, I think that it is relevant to the taxpayers of the city of Eau Claire. The County Board approved $59.1 million for this project. Every estimate I have ever heard, including those from proponents, is that the building, when complete, will cost in excess of $100 million. It is crystal clear to anyone who cares to look at this that the County Board set the approval of funding at $59.1 million to avoid the requirement to take any funding issue of $60 million or more to the voters in a referendum. The citizens of Eau Claire Count are not aware that the County Board has already raised their property taxes by 15% this year and for each of the following 29 years. If the full cost of the project hits the taxpayer’s wallets, the increase will be as much as 30% for each year in the next thirty years. Many of these County residents are also residents of the city of Eau Claire. The City Council would not allow the Eau Claire School District to do such an end run around the voters. Why should the Eau Claire City Council collude with this plan? I want to see full disclosure to the voters. This will mean bringing ALL of the information to the public. If the voters decide to approve a bond issue in referendum and if that vote indicates voter acceptance of site of the proposed building, then I will stand away from the issue. The voters will have spoken, and it is their money (and mine).

Thank you for receiving and considering my input. I would be happy to respond to any questions or comments you may have.

Sincerely,
Nick Smiar

Eau Claire's Alcatraz

2008-02-15T13:09:00.001-08:00

The city of Eau Claire has promoted, financed and built a beautiful riverside bike trail that has been augmented by the purchase of a railroad bridge, a funeral parlor and extensive easements to ensure its success. The city also has implemented development at the confluence of our two great rivers in Phoenix Park and the North Barstow area at great expense and with increasingly positive vision. It appears that a concentration of attention on the city center and riverfront with development and improvement may pay dividends in the future.

So how could Eau Claire County be allowed to expand a jail to the very verge of the pearl of the city? Do the inmates need a view of Phoenix Park and a revitalized downtown? Is the jail to be part of the centerpiece of the riverfront? I can't wait to sit on the lawn in Phoenix Park, listen to some jailhouse blues and view the razor wire across the sky-blue waters. San Francisco has Alcatraz and we'll have the Eau Claire County Jail. Rock on!

WILLI CHENEY

Eau Claire

Opposed to Jail Expansion (open letter to County Board and City Council)

2008-02-15T13:06:00.000-08:00

I'm strongly opposed to Eau Claire putting a jail on one of the nicest riverfront areas in the city. Having lived in other U.S cities with riverfront areas, Ive seen the good that can come with proper planning and use of such destination areas. The thought of putting a jail in the proposed downtown area is absolutely ridiculous, and I hope you will oppose it. Future generations will look back at this decision as either a what were they thinking??, or will appreciate that the riverfront business/residential area has been preserved and expanded.

It also has become very personal to me in that it is directly affecting the future of Just Local Food. Ive been a loyal customer since moving to Eau Claire, and have even begun working there (as a second job) because I believe so strongly in the local food movement.

I look forward to hearing your position on this matter, and what you will do to oppose it.

Respectfully,
Laura Sommer

Jail site plan

2008-02-14T21:45:00.000-08:00

Jail site plan dated January 31.

the location is problematic

2008-02-14T12:44:00.000-08:00

MUST we have a jail addition on this choice piece of almost-riverfront land? MUST we take THIS land off the tax roles? MUST we raze this neat-as-a-pin neighborhood to put up an impersonal government building--even razing one of the oldest buildings in our neighborhood, one seen in old photo's shot from the river?

Isn't there a piece of city-owned land you could swap with the County--one on the periphery with easier-Interstate access for visitors--that could be used for a new jail.

Admittedly, we need more jail space and interest rates now are optimal for getting the job done. The time is right; the location is problematic.

Penny France

Who Knew?

2008-02-13T19:34:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday night, February 5^th, the Eau Claire County Board approved the purchase of 2 properties totaling $490,000 which they intend to move or demolish to clear a site for the construction of a nearly $60 million jail.

Who knew?

How many residents are even aware that the county board has approved the new $60 million jail?

How many residents know that the proposed site is between First and Second Avenue directly adjacent to the beautiful Chippewa River downtown?

How many people know how much this will raise their property taxes?

How will a waterfront jail fit with the Comprehensive Downtown Development Plan? Who knows the results of an environmental impact study? Was there one?

It seems to me that there are a lot of important questions that the people of this county need to be asking their elected officials before we can commit to such a large scale project that will impact the entire community for decades to come.

Who knew?

Eric Zeegers

Candidate for County Board

Letter to County Board

2008-02-13T14:56:00.002-08:00

I am concerned about recent actions of the County Board and groups within county government regarding construction of a new jail. In a recent motion, the County Board approved what was proposed as a $59.1 million expenditure for a new county jail. My primary concern is that the entire process has been, ultimately, an end-run around voter review and approval via a referendum, which is the ordinary and legal way to secure approval of public projects over $60 million. Every effort has been made to “fly under the radar” of voter review and approval.

I was present at one of the first “community advisory meetings,” held at Lakeshore School. The presenters tried very hard to make their presentation seem to be informational only. However, when I asked whether the decision regarding not only what was to be built but also whether there would be such a project had already been made, after much hemming and hawing, I was told that the decision had, in fact, already been made. It was, in other words, a “done deal.” The whole process, from the beginning to the present time, has been deceptive.

Now, most recently, I understand that a test of the site has been done. Results indicate that land instability would require the use of pilings as supports for any structure on the plot of land along Ann Street. Although I am not an expert on construction, even I know that that will add substantially to the cost of construction. I have been told that the response of the group which is pushing the project forward is that they will simply make changes in the building specifications to stay within the $59.1 million. This means to me that this group has every intention of keeping this issue away from a referendum. Every person with whom I have spoken about this project, both proponents and opponents, have acknowledged that $59.1 million is not the full cost of the project, even the full cost of the funding which will have to come in a bond issue (or two bond issues). Most estimates range between $100 million and $150 million. Even the $59.1 million which you have approved will add 15% to my property tax each year for the next thirty years.

We have not had full disclosure to the voters, and the issue has not come before them in a referendum. We would not permit our school district to do this. We ought not to permit the county to do this. Let the group which is proposing the project make its case to the voters, in the same way that we require the school district to do this to secure approval of a bond issue. I am opposed even to building the new jail, and especially on that site. However, if the voters indicate their approval, then I will stand down from the issue. If the voters do not have the opportunity to approve or disapprove the proposal and the bond issue and when they discover that your action has led to a 15% to 30% increase in property taxes over the term of the bond(s), I believe that you will face the ire of the taxpayers. I realize that your approval of the $59.1 million was not for a bond issue; it was to come from the county’s budget. However, the effect on the property tax is the same.

If you were one of the persons who voted to approve this matter, I strongly encourage you to make a “motion to reconsider” the original motion (following Robert’s Rules of Order). Bring the issue back. Require full disclosure. Ask for an itemized estimate of the full cost of the project, to determine the actual size of the bond issue which will be necessary or the full impact on the county budget. I think that the strategy is to get the walls and roof on the ground and then to come back for funds for completion, a two-strike strategy. I am hopping mad about this because some persons are trying to pull the wool over the county residents’, taxpayers’ eyes. I do not like to see things decided in the smoky back room. Bring this issue out into the light of day. Let’s thrash it out in the public forum, with full disclosure.

Thank you for reading my concerns. I know that you will give them serious consideration. I fully expect this issue to be taken up by the County Board as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Nick Smiar

Letter to Editor

2008-02-13T14:56:00.001-08:00

Dear Editor:

How many taxpayers in Eau Claire County are aware that their property taxes have increased because of a major expense the county has taken on, without seeking the consent of the voters through a referendum? I am referring to the County Board’s decision to proceed with the construction of a new jail. The proposal is to build a new jail as an addition to the county building, extending along Ann Street, east of the present building, taking the properties on both sides of Ann Street out to First Avenue, and maybe more.. The reported estimated cost of the building is $59.1 million, although I do not know anyone who has seen the itemized estimate, and so we do not know if that estimate includes all costs for the entire project or just a “bare bones” estimate to put up the walls, floors, and roof, and then add on the rest of the cost when it is too late. A recent land survey indicates that pilings will have to be built to support the building, which will certainly increase the cost. A more realistic estimate may be as high as $100 million.

For any project which is more than $60 million, there must be a referendum in which the voters can approve or disapprove of the expenditure, which we often see when the school district wants to build a new school or make major renovations.

This project seems to be “flying under the radar” of voter review. We may, in fact, need a new jail, and it may have to be where it is proposed. However, I want to see voter review of such a major expenditure. Let the case be made in public through a referendum. Do not put this financial burden on the taxpayer without that referendum. I have heard that even the current estimated cost would increase our property tax by 15% for each year over the next thirty years. We would not allow the school board to do this; we certainly should not allow the County Board to do it. Let’s have full disclosure and voter review through a referendum.

Nick Smiar

Eau Claire – A Great Place to Spend Time

2008-02-13T14:53:00.000-08:00

9 February 2008

Dear City of Eau Claire Council Member,

Please take a firm stand against the expansion of the county jail complex onto First Avenue along the Chippewa River. Why this project even remains a possibility is a mystery to me. This county imposition on our city is an insult to our community and runs counter to the very goals toward which much of the Eau Claire community has been working, including efforts of Downtown Eau Claire, Inc., UWEC Strategic Planning, Eau Claire Redevelopment Authority, Eau Claire’s Historic Preservation Foundation, Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Commission and others. For numerous social, economic and environmental reasons, the proposal must be quashed immediately.

The City is, and should be, proud of its recent accomplishments and efforts along the Chippewa and Eau Claire Rivers. These include Phoenix Park and the Farmer’s Market, the multiple bike/pedestrian bridges, the ongoing redevelopment of the tire factory, the Chippewa River State Trail connecting the Old Abe with the Red Cedar Trails, the possible purchase of riverfront property around Oxford Avenue, the North Barstow Redevelopment project, and so on. Having a three or four-story monstrosity placed at the center of all this positive improvement is incongruous and will be with us for decades.

To place a jail in such a prominent place, in the heart of our community, at a hub of state recreational trails, will make it a defining feature of our city and part of our identity. What are people to think of such an overwhelming structure on the landscape from across the river, from the Lake Street Bridge, while fishing or floating the Chippewa River, while biking down the State Trail? Forget UWEC as the most beautiful UW campus, Eau Claire will be known as that city with the new jail downtown. Great for La Crosse, rotten for us. And the possibilities for new city mottos and logos will be endless – “Eau Claire: Wisconsin’s most beautiful place to do time;” images of fishermen in black and white striped waders; signs along the Chippewa River warning canoeists not to pick up hitchhikers. You get the picture.

Compounding the disgrace of having a modern jail as the cornerstone of a revitalized downtown Eau Claire is having to pay for it. The cost of the jail has been disingenuously underestimated at $59.1 million. (Is it true that projects of $60 million or more require a supermajority to get county board approval but those less than that don’t?) No such project gets done without significant cost over runs. Other reasonable estimates of the project bring the cost of the jail closer to $100 million or more. If one includes the expenses related to hiring additional staff to operate the new jail over the next 15 years, the total bill begins to approach $200 million. City residents, who make up 67% of the county’s population, will have to pay for most of it. By some estimates, this comes to over $2500 per person. Why are we willing to do this when we cannot even raise a comparative pittance of that amount for our city’s schools and teachers? Shame on us! It does not take a creative policy genius to imagine what impact $200 million or $59.1 million or a fraction of that, spent in the county and city on education, community development, small business enterprises, opportunities for youth, social programs, riverfront enhancement, etc. would do for improving our city, maybe even reducing our need for an expanded jail.

On top of actual costs, the opportunity costs of placing the jail on the riverfront will further detract from the city’s coffers. Will county facilities pay taxes as residential or commercial properties do? Moreover, if it is true that the county intends to house prisoners from other jurisdictions to generate revenue, such income will go to the county. Should the City be so generous with taxpayer resources when we have our own serious financial needs?
This is not to say we may not need to work on our correctional facilities. I value and greatly appreciate the role of local law enforcement, and if there truly is a need for a new jail it should be done in a manner consistent with actual needs of community, law enforcement, prisoners and city-wide goals and planning. A downtown riverfront is not the place. Our riverfront is prime for redevelopment that meets the needs, desires, dreams for, and pride in, our community.

The alternatives for First Avenue are exciting. The city could find architectural possibilities from pictures of Eau Claire in local archives, small businesses could make the area a destination for walkers and bikers, and Eau Claire could be integrated across the Chippewa River. Instead of a jail on its tourism and promotional materials, the city could promote its extraordinary number of pedestrian and bike bridges. We have six such bridges in our small city, with at least one other in the plans. This integration between environment, residence and business would be the envy of other cities our size. We want people to come to Eau Claire because they want to, not because they have to.

Demonstrate your care for the City of Eau Claire, its people and environment, by putting an immediate stop to discussions that entertain a jail on our precious waterfront asset. It is a waste of resources, energy and time and seems to have already involved sneaky and behind the scenes shenanigans – no two explanations of what is going on are consistent. (For example, the map of the proposed jail and its parking lots as posted on the County’s website is different from the architects’ drawing provided for the February issue of The Progressive Outpost). Our community expects you to work productively with the County toward meeting all of our needs, but not to roll over for them. In the long run, Eau Claire County will thank you for it.

Thank you for your efforts on this issue specifically and for your work on the City Council more generally. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this issue, and would enjoy the opportunity to discuss them with you in person.

Respectfully,
Paul Kaldjian
East Side Hill

Leader Telegram article

2008-02-13T14:48:00.000-08:00

An article covering the recent CAJE meeting is posted on the Leader Telegram website.

Updated: 2/12/2008

Jail plan rankles residents

Group wants $60 million expansion proposal stopped

By Brad Bryan

Leader-Telegram staff

See it.

TV-13 coverage

2008-02-13T14:46:00.000-08:00

From their website:

Expanding the Eau Claire County Courthouse and Jail

Posted: 10:45 PM Feb 5, 2008
Last Updated: 10:45 PM Feb 5, 2008

The Eau Claire County Board is moving ahead with plans to expand the courthouse and jail.

Monday night board members discussed buying a home at 113 Ann Street and one at 762 First Avenue. On a vote of 16 to 9 members authorized the county lawyer to complete and finalize the purchases so it can use that land for expansion.

Progressive Outpost article

2008-02-13T14:33:00.001-08:00

County Jail Project Threatens Downtown Food Cooperative

By Jeremy Gragert, Eau Claire
The Progressive Outpost – February 2008 (Published January 29, 2008)

The $59.1 million Eau Claire County building renovation and jail project approved last year, which includes a massive new three-story jail being sited between the current county building and the Chippewa River, is very close to the Just Local Food cooperative grocery at 772 First Ave. For months, preliminary site plans have shown a parking lot replacing the building that Just Local Food currently leases, making the worker-owners of the cooperative more than a little nervous about the future of their store.

“We want to stay here. It’s a great spot for a grocery store,” said Aaron Ellringer, a worker-owner who has been exploring Just Local Food’s options if the building’s owner, Gerald Niblett, agrees to sell the building to the county. Currently, the county is in the process of having the property independently appraised so an offer can be made to Niblett, said Frank Draxler, the city-county purchasing director who has taken on the role of project manager for the expansion project.

About half of all properties east of the current county building, between Lake Street and Grand Avenue, are under threat of being acquired by the county for either the new jail or new parking lots. The exceptions include all the Grand Avenue businesses, the houses directly on Lake Street, and the Victorian home at 751 Second Ave. Ellringer of Just Local Food questions why the building that the store operates out of was not given similar protection by the Eau Claire County Board.

Some county board members are wondering the same. County board supervisor Maureen Slauson, whose district includes the county building area, said she doesn’t understand why all of the commercial buildings along First Avenue are under threat by a riverfront parking lot. “There are a number of people on the county board who do not want to see this gone,” Slauson said, adding that the buildings have historical and aesthetic value even if they did not house the only grocery store in the downtown.

It has been grumblings like that that may have caused the latest jail site plan (released as a draft on January 11) to leave almost all of the commercial buildings on First Avenue intact, with the exception of a portion of Eau Claire FabriCare, an operating dry cleaning and laundry business at 768 First Ave. The sudden appearance of the commercial buildings on the plans surprised Ellringer of Just Local Food, because he said that Draxler and the acquisition firm hired by the county to appraise the property, Timbers-Selissen Land Specialists, Inc., has always made it quite clear to him that the county intends the store to be a parking lot before the end of the year.

“In order for us to stay here we need to improve the infrastructure of the buildings,” Ellringer said. “Nobody is going to improve the infrastructure of the buildings if the county is threatening to buy them and rip them down.” Because of that threat Just Local Food has been working with the city for months on finding a new location in the downtown, rather than spending time and resources to buy or improve the building they are currently occupying.

But recently, Chuck Gable, of Eau Claire, has been in contact with Just Local Food about how he could help financially support improvements to the buildings so that the cooperative could stay. Gable has even been in contact with Niblett about purchasing the buildings before the county makes an offer on them, but Niblett is waiting for the county’s offer first. Gable says removing the buildings and the businesses along First Avenue would be a mistake. “These buildings were built in the 1800’s for food distribution,” Gable said. “Just Local Food is providing the same service as the people who built the buildings had.

It is unclear whether Niblett, the owner of the properties, will sell to the county following the appraisal that is expected to be complete by February. According to Draxler, if Niblett does not want to sell at the price offered to him, the county is obligated to pay for a second independent appraisal, and if a deal can’t be worked out after a third appraisal the acquisition goes in front of a judge. In the end the county has the power to condemn individual properties, but not without the approval of the county board.

Draxler said the county has not had trouble acquiring properties to date, with each property acquisition having to get the approval of the county board. Draxler said that the county board has the final say, for example, over whether the buildings along First Avenue are purchased by the county or not. Supervisor Slauson, quoted earlier, said she would vote against the county purchasing the buildings. For the time being, Draxler says, the county is planning to offer Niblett a price for the buildings and will try to negotiate a purchase sometime in early February.

“My priorities are working with the site plan and making sure we have adequate parking,” said Draxler. “If we don’t need those buildings (for parking), we aren’t going to take the buildings.” Draxler said there is no set number of parking spaces required at this time, but at a minimum, the county would prefer to replace the number of parking spaces lost when the new jail is built on top of current surface parking. “It’s mainly up to how much parking we need and the cost of acquisition,” Draxler said, about whether to acquire certain properties outside of the jail footprint.

Draxler admitted that the owners of Eau Claire FabriCare, the dry cleaning business next to Just Local Food, do not want to sell their building to the county either. “FabriCare is concerned with its client base,” said Draxler, a base that is primarily people who dress formally and work at or near the county courthouse. A move elsewhere, even if the county pays FabriCare to relocate, could shut down the business if the cliental can’t be maintained.

To answer concerns of community members, one project workgroup formed in December, called the Community Advisory Team, has representatives from the neighborhood and area businesses and is charged with providing input on the outward appearance of the jail building and the basics of the site plan. Representatives of the Milwaukee-based firm Venture Architects, which has the contract for architectural and engineering services for the project, attend the meetings. Venture presented the latest site plan on January 11 showing the Just Local Food building on the plan for the first time. When asked why the buildings were on the site plan, Draxler said: “It was just the way the architect drew it at the time.

According to County Clerk Janet Loomis, the Community Advisory Team has no real decision-making power, and therefore the meetings of the workgroup are not given public notice. Technically, members of the general public are allowed to attend but must contact the county for meeting times and locations. Draxler said discussion of specific businesses would not be allowed at future Community Advisory Team meetings, which are scheduled every three weeks for the months ahead. It would not be appropriate to publicly negotiate the future of the buildings, and the Advisory Team does not have that authority anyway, Draxler said. “I’m not going to allow discussion of Just Local Food at those meetings,” insisted Draxler.

The future of the buildings, and whether Just Local Food will have to relocate, is expected to be decided by the end of March. Ellringer said the grocery cooperative is looking at all of its options, and are hoping to be included in discussions with the county officials and Timbers-Selissen, the firm hired to handle acquisition for the county. Ellringer summed up the uncertainty: “It’s a rollercoaster, that’s for sure.

Upcoming Meetings:
held in Rm 2550 of the Eau Claire County Courthouse

Public Open Houses
Wednesday, February 20 – 6:00pm
Wednesday, April 2 – 6:00pm

Community Advisory Team
Friday, February 1 – 7:30am
Friday, February 22 – 7:30am

SING SING SING

2008-02-13T14:28:00.000-08:00

by Ken Fulgione

It seems to me that we are missing several important issues and just accepting the placement of the new county jail in downtown Eau Claire as a done deal. During the entire process there has been an outpour of location opposition from the public. They have politely been given their opportunity to speak and then ignored. Downtown Eau Claire is not the appropriate location to try to shoe-horn in this structure… but no matter what is said ~ the band plays on. Aside from the new discovered additional costs in the neighborhood of ½ to 1.5 million dollars for piers or some type of enhanced foundation needed to build the jail in the otherwise unstable ground, the county will also be spending unreported hundreds of thousands of dollars to put on a secondary skin and cosmetic façade towers to make the jail look like it is not a jail….. The large expanse of windows overlooking the riverfront & bike trail are all added cost and will not actually show in the cell blocks located in the building inside the façade.

These absurdities go well to compliment the fact that the city spent almost 2 years developing a comprehensive plan that allowed for protection of the homes on Lake St and the creation of a Court House Campus in that area ~ not a 4 story jail. The city has purchased land along the riverfront….. added bike & walking trails, and has spent enormous sums in developing the river front and Phoenix Park … all now to be overshadowed by the downtown county jail.

And this initial project can by no means considered complete. After the enormous fancy faced jail is squeezed into the site, the county’s parking problem will be increased. Even before counting the added staff that will be needed to man the 2 story jail (they are not in the budget by the way) there will only be a net increase of 15 parking spaces…. And with the jail planned to be able to go up to 4 stories high and a new court house planned to remove homes on Lake St … when do you think the parking ramp will be added to the tax rolls?

I feel like we need R2-D2 to say …. “Obie-One my City – you are our only hope”. The County board with its normal back to the public has ignored the public opposition & rejected the idea of allowing for a Referendum on spending the 59.1 million initially budgeted for this project. (That is close to $100,000,000 without cost overruns by the time it is outdated and paid for) The public’s last hope and only opportunity to speak out against this project, lies with the City. The land still needs to be re-zoned and the City’s new Comprehensive Plan will have to be changed in order to allow the building of this monstrosity to continue. The money spent to date can be easily re-couped by the County, and the City can say NO!!! … the jail does not belong downtown.

Several county residents have already started to form a group calling for Accountability in the Jail Expansion project and it is very likely that the City Council will be forced to overcome a Super-Majority vote in order to approve the necessary re-zoning. If the Plan Commission & City Council are affected by an enraged public and the re-zoning does not pass….. then the County will be forced to consider other alternatives that would be less detrimental to downtown Eau Claire.

So if you are outraged by location of a Downtown fancy skinned jail along the river or by the rejection of you having a voice by referendum in the expenditure of such a large sum of tax dollars > call the City Council. If you think the long term plans of a 4 story jail and a new court house and the removal of the Lake St homes is not in the best interest of our downtown development efforts > call your City Council. If you feel that the County Board should turn their chairs around and face the public and listen to their constituents then send them a message > call the City Council and tell them to reject the Re-zoning and not to change the City’s Comprehensive Plan…… And why you are on the phone or sending e-mails, let the County Board hear from you. You may have spoken before and been ignored …. but it ain’t over till Yogi Bear sings.

Next Meeting

2008-02-13T14:16:00.000-08:00

Citizens for Accountability in Jail Expansion:

We have grown and plan to contact the next 1000 this week. Thank you …. to those who had time to come out on a frozen night to attend a meeting to discuss strategies to stop the Riverfront Jail Façade. We left the meeting with the promise to start contacting the media – the county board – the Plan Commission & the Eau Claire City Council with our concerns and comments as to why shoehorning in a jail along the riverfront is detrimental to the city of Eau Claire…. should not be done without a public referendum …. and is going to be un-necessarily wasteful of taxpayers money and on and on and on. Please join in the efforts.
The best thing about the Riverfront Façade Jail is that there are so many reasons why it should not occur that we will have unlimited things to write about. PLEASE DO MAKE SOME CONTACTS. The attached file will provide you with all of the email addresses for the County Board & the City Council members. Contact them all.

We also will be sending out letters to as many of the 1000 signatures in opposition as we can the next couple weeks…. And I would hope you all will talk to at least 2 more people and bring them along to our next meeting FEBRUARY 18 AT 7PM AT 1ST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH across from Randall Park.

If you can not make that meeting ~ we will also be gathering at the County Board Open House in the County Court House 2nd Floor at 6PM on FEBRUARY 20th to talk with the board members in attendance…. Bring along a sign & send them a note and let them know you are coming.

(this was an email sent by Ken Fulgione)

Upcoming County Meetings:
held in Rm 2550 of the Eau Claire County Courthouse

Public Open Houses
Wednesday, February 20 – 6:00pm
Wednesday, April 2 – 6:00pm

Community Advisory Team
Friday, February 22 – 7:30am

An Open Letter to the Eau Claire County Board and Eau Claire City Council

2008-02-13T13:03:00.001-08:00

We are writing to let you know of our strong opposition to the current plan to expand the city jail. This plan is a bad idea for the following eight reasons:

1. It would impose a huge burden on Eau Claire taxpayers, a burden they neither want nor deserve. At a time when the whole country — and especially the struggling State of Wisconsin — are hovering on the brink of recession, it is hardly an opportune moment to embark on a project that we now realize would cost over $60 million dollars before it was done. Do the citizens realize that we would be paying for this ill-conceived venture for the next 30 years, and that it would raise property taxes by an average amount of between 15% and 20% per family? To make matters worse, most of the costs for design and construction of the new facilities are slated to go to businesses from outside of the Chippewa Valley. That money would not recirculate back into the local economy; it would be lost to us for good.

2. It represents a poor set of priorities to put the county’s educational needs at the bottom of the list in order to place correctional facilities at the top. Are you aware of the fact that over the past three decades the State of Wisconsin has reduced its spending for higher education by almost exactly the same amount that it has increased spending for its bloated prison system? This trend cannot go on indefinitely! If it continues, we will lose an entire generation of young people, their hopes and dreams nipped in the bud because they cannot individually afford the rising costs of higher education. (As educators, this is of particular concern to us.) The only solution, in our view, is for the state and local governments to resume their fair share of the costs for education. Yet the huge and costly jail construction plan will effectively turn its back on our students and youth.

3. We would do far better to create less expensive rehabilitation facilities for local lawbreakers. Most of these have been convicted of non-violent crimes in any case, and they can be dealt with more effectively by sentences involving a combination of house-arrest, drug or alcohol rehabilitation where necessary, and community service. The money freed up by emptying jail cells could be used to provide more easily accessible higher education for all. Would we not do better to rehabilitate our young people and send them to school than plan to increase their rate of incarceration?

4. The estimated costs for the new jail project keep creeping up incrementally. The latest news we’ve heard is that the soil all along the Randal Park riverbank area is insufficiently stable to support the weight of such a large edifice. As a result, there would need to be a soil stabilization procedure prior to construction, adding costs of somewhere between half-a-million and a million dollars to the original estimate! Some people may say this is “only” half a million dollars, but the taxpayers of Wisconsin will not be so blasé when they realize how their representatives have wasted their hard-earned dollars.

5. Some have argued that the rising number of crimes in Wisconsin requires the building of more and more prisons. Yet the fact remains that Eau Claire is one of the safest places in the country to live, with a relatively low crime rate. According to my information, the expansion plan calls for filling up the beds in the new jail facility with prisoners drawn from other parts of the state, since there won’t be nearly enough local criminals to incarcerate. So the intention is to ship them in from Milwaukee and Madison, principally. In this way, the presumed hope is over time to pay for prison cells that should never have been located here in the first place. This plan may be clever, to be sure but in adopting it the planners implicitly admit that they are expanding the jail to an extent far surpassing Eau Claire County’s needs.

6. Further, has the Eau Claire County Board considered that prisoners, too, have families and friends who need to visit them on a frequent basis, both for the prisoners’ morale and for their families’ sakes? It is simply inhumane to shift prisoners around over long distances from one part of the state to another, treating them like mere chattel with no human dignity. We hope that the Eau Claire City Council will have a more compassionate attitude when your turn comes to consider this matter.

7. Even if it could be shown that Eau Claire needs such a huge increase in its jail facilities — which we very much doubt — it still would not follow that the jail should be built in the Randall Park area. Randall Park is one of the oldest and finest neighborhoods ***in the city, yet many members of the County Board are evidently willing to destroy many of the loveliest homes there. Among those on the list slated for demolition are several houses of real historic significance, including that of the first mayor of Eau Claire. This neighborhood also features a growing artistic community. The entire area is situated by our prized Chippewa River waterfront. This is an area where the town’s children and adults alike now spend restful summer afternoons. They will scarcely be pleased to see the intrusion on their leisure space by the expensive behemoth that is now being planned.

Directly across from these treasures Eau Claire has just spent a great deal of energy and taxpayers’ dollars to improve the landscape with Phoenix Park and the new Open Air Marketplace. And now there are plans to spend far more money to destroy the opposite bank by demolishing the lovely old neighborhood in order to erect a large, impersonal jail that will stretch along the waterfront and sports paths? Instead of doing that, we would urge our representatives to fix their sights on the outskirts of the city away from any recreational sites, where the land is cheaper and the soil is more stable and where a reasonable distance can be maintained between the facility and local homes; a site where incidentally prisoners also could have some opportunity for outdoor exercise or involvement in some useful pursuit. We know that alternative sites have been suggested numerous times, yet for unknown reasons this option has never been seriously explored.

8. It may be said that those promoting a jail expansion have the best interests of Eau Claire in mind, that they are simply making some tough choices for the betterment of the community as a whole. In that case, however, one has to ask: why is there so much resistance to putting the matter before the voters in a referendum? If the jail-expansion advocates of the Eau Claire County Board genuinely believe that these construction plans reflect the best interests of the citizens, then you should have nothing to fear by submitting the matter for decision by plebiscite.

Some of the members of the County Board have already decided that they wish to go forward with this project. We would like to suggest that you reconsider this decision very seriously, pondering the fact that a very large contingent of your electorate do not stand behind you on this plan and are deeply opposed to the long-term taxes that it would impose. As word of the profligate waste as well as the planned destruction to their community spreads throughout city, people are mobilizing in order to prevent this from going forward.

If the Eau Claire County Board should choose to ignore their constituents’ pleas, then we must appeal to the City Council to please deal appropriately with these plans. Talk to your neighbors. Ask them if they want to pay a huge increase in taxes for the next 30 years for the privilege of having their waterfront destroyed.

And then please, let the will of the people decide!

Respectfully,

Edward and Emily Beach

Eau Claire, WI 54703

county board contacts

2008-02-12T16:31:00.000-08:00

	Click here for the official county board contact list, which doesn't include email addresses. You'll find those below:

	County Board Contact List	EMAIL	PHONE	ADDRESS	CITY
1	Gary G. Gibson	gibson1954@highstream.net	715.877.2730	E16934 Scenic Dr.	Fall Creek, WI 54742
2	Will Fantle	wfantle@sbcglobal.net	715.839.7731	901 Platt St.	Eau Claire, WI 54703
3	Howard J. Ludwigson	ludhv@charter.net	715.832.6759	5537 Bayview Drive	Eau Claire, WI 54703
4	Stella Pagonis	sappy@mac.com	715.835.5007	1019 Tenth St.	Altoona, WI 54720
5	Roger (Jody) Hahn	rhahn2004@hotmail.com	715.286.5343	612 Buckman Street	Augusta, WI 54722
6	Richard Ziemann		715.877.2191	543 So. State St.	Fall Creek
7	Ronald B. Erickson		715.835.4186	S9670 County Road F	Eau Claire, WI 54701
8	Bruce Willett	bruce.willett@co.eau-claire.wi.us	715.834.9418	3204 Blakeley Avenue	Eau Claire, WI 54701
9	Gordon C.Steinhauer		715.834.6596	W4945 Langdell Road	Eau Claire, WI 54701
10	David Donovan		715.839-9547	1616 Birdlawn Road	Eau Claire, WI 54701
11	Ray Henning	gspike1@yahoo.com	715.832.4971	1603 Spooner Ave.	Altoona, WI 54720
12	Colleen A. Bates	pbates9813@charter.net	715.835.9813	405 Skyline Drive	Eau Claire, WI 54703
13	Kathleen M. Clark	kcamacoy@sbcglobal.net	715.832.5078	2014 Linda Lane	Eau Claire, WI 54703
14	Jean D. Schlieve	jdjms2@aol.com	715.832.6911	2115 Sherman Creek Rd	Eau Claire, WI 54703
15	Maureen Slauson	mtslauson@gmail.com	715.832.5338	322 W. Grand Ave..	Eau Claire, WI 54701
16	Joel Mikelson	bigdonutman@hotmail.com	715.839-0192	702 Water Street	Eau Claire, WI 54703
17	Gregg Moore	greggmoore@fastmail.fm	715.832.7109	428 E. Tyler Ave.	Eau Claire, WI 54701
18	James A. Dunning	jdunning@charter.net	715.839.0039	164 Wold Ct	Eau Claire, WI 54701
19	Donald Ellickson	ellickdl@charter.net	715.834.1558	922 E. Tyler Avenue	Eau Claire, WI 54701
20	Emily Smith Nguyen	ESmithDC@msn.com	715.835.1106	3337 Briarcrest Drive	Eau Claire, WI 54701
21	Gerald (Jerry) Wilkie	gwilkie@charter.net	715.834.9524	3114 Coltman Lane	Eau Claire, WI 54701
22	Sue Miller		715.834.0750	209 Washington Street	Eau Claire, WI 54701

23	Robin J. Leary		715.832.3741	2104 Providence Court	Eau Claire, WI 54703
24	Mark J. Schmitt	ms0174@charter.net	715.834.0174	2831 Wellington Drive East	Eau Claire, WI 54703
25	Dennis Jenson	denjen@wwt.net	715.834-7699	2921 Mountaray Drive	Eau Claire, WI 54703
26	Tami Schraufnagel	tamis@bartechsol.com	715.835-2604	529 Hobart Street	Eau Claire, WI 54703
27	Paul A. Lokken, Sr.		715.834.3762	1167 E. Madison Street	Eau Claire, WI 54703
28	John B. DeRosier	oinkers@discover-net.net	715.839.0327	1316 Altoona Avenue	Eau Claire, WI 54701
29	Patrick L. Lavelle		715.577.0900	1925 Laurel Avenue	Eau Claire, WI 54701

Eau Claire Comprehensive Plan

2008-02-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

The EC comprehensive plan map does not indicate a riverfront jail as appropriate, rather a courthouse campus, which is a different things altogether... (click pic for biggie)

Alternatives: leader telegram coverage

2008-02-12T15:04:00.000-08:00

Updated: 1/27/2008

Tailoring the courts

Treatments aim to fit needs of teens, single moms, mentally ill

By Dan Holtz

Leader-Telegram staff

Read it here.

city council contacts

2008-02-11T07:33:00.000-08:00

Click here for the official contact site. DAVID J. ADLER, City Council President	david.adler@charter.net
HAL DAVIS	aehedavis@charter.net
RAYMOND HUGHES	rhughes5785@charter.net
KERRY KINCAID,	kerryjsk@charter.net
BRANDON BUCHANAN	buchanan.brandon@hotmail.com
THOMAS T. VUE	thomas.vue@dwd.state.wi.us
DAVID L. DUAX - Dist. #1	dave.citycouncil@charter.net
DAVID KLINKHAMMER- DIST. #2	deklink@charter.net
THOMAS KEMP - Dist. #3	kemp_eccouncil@hotmail.com
BOB VON HADEN - Dist. #4	bvonhaden@charter.net
BERLYE S. MIDDLETON - Dist. #5	bsmsbh@yahoo.com

Mike Huggins, City Manager	cityhall@ci.eau-claire.wi.us

PlanCommission	term
Davis, Hal	City Council
FitzGerald, Dave	6/04 – 4/09
Hughes, Ray	City Council
Kaiser, Jack	8/02 – 4/08
Kayser, Rick J.	3/06 – 4/10
Larson, Brian F.	2/06 – 4/08
Levandowski, Joel (Chair)	5/02 – 4/08
Vande Loo, Rich	5/02 – 4/08
Waedt, Fred	3/03– 4/09