Finding Solutions: A look into the new Edgefield County Law Enforcement Center
EDGEFIELD, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - Earlier this year, your I-TEAM found local jails in South Carolina did not meet the state safety standards, and Edgefield County was no exception.
That’s why they’re looking ahead to a new law enforcement center set to open in January.
On Tuesday, we got a walk-through of the new facility where the sheriff says they’re finding solutions in no repeating the past.
The old building has been around since 1980 and Sheriff Jody Rowland says after failing many state inspections, they decided to create a study that focused on the needs of the jail.
“Because of so many violations and so many needs in the old center, the product that you see today is a lot of the things we know needed to be corrected desperately,” said Rowland. “This is probably the most advanced county jail in the state.”
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Rowland says the current jail has failed inspections in the past due to safety issues.
“They were just plain old, and could not be repaired,” said Rowland. The process could not be changed because of the construction, the layout and the way it was processed.”
Rowland says building a new facility ensures all needs are met and brings different resources under one roof.
“We don’t have a kitchen in the old jail, we don’t have a courtroom in the old magistrate’s office,” said Rowland. “There’s so many basic needs we’ve missed over the years that we’ve brought into this design.”
It’s a $41 million project that’s taken just over two years to build.
Rowland says it has seven cell blocks and can hold up to 134 inmates with room to expand.
The current jail was designed to hold just under 50.
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“We’ve been doing it the hard way for so long we hardly know anything else, so to come out here to a state-of-the-art detention facility and operated with fewer people, less danger, this is going to be a boost in morale for every county employee,” he said.
Rowland says he hopes this new building helps with recruitment and retention within the sheriff’s office.
That’s a part of why you can find a gym on-site.
“If you want to step outside that hustle and bustle a little bit, we have a top-of-the-line facility to work in, to train in,” said Rowland. “We put a great deal of emphasis on training for such a small agency, I’ll be able to recruit you here.”
The ribbon cutting for the 67-thousand-square-foot facility will be held Jan. 17.
We’re told there will be a gradual move-in process between all departments, the sheriff’s office, magistrate court and dispatch center happening around that time.
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