Sheriff's candidates agree on jail renovation needs

CHILLICOTHE - Candidates for the Ross County Sheriff's Office agree on many issues in the upcoming jail renovations, including the need for more beds and more staff.

Jail expansion has been an issue incumbent candidate George Lavender and Ross County commissioners have been looking to address from the start in order to house an increased average number of inmates.

Lavender said building a third story onto the building, which the original design sought to allow, has been ruled out. Despite that, Democrat candidate Donald Hayburn II and Independent candidate Brady Ratzlaff said they are still considering building a third floor an option, but see the possibility of expanding into recreation areas.

In less immediate phases, commissioners and design crews have discussed plans of expansion into the indoor recreation area to create space for a growing infirmary and additional cells while enclosing the outdoor recreation space. Long term, there could be options to build on into the parking lot, even possibly purchasing the Elks property next door.

Hayburn and Ratzlaff also pointed out jail spaces not used by Ross County could be contracted to other counties, leading to income.

"My main priority is Ross County first," Hayburn assured.

Another thing all three candidates agreed on is the need for more manpower once the jail is expanded.

Lavender wants to make sure whatever addition is designed will be as efficient as possible, in order to keep the number of new employees hired low, while keeping everyone in the jail safe.

"When we build, we want to build with safety in mind," Lavender said.

Hayburn said he would like to find ways to not only hire new officers to work in the jail, but to help retain the employees already there. Ratzlaff hopes to prioritize the budget and consolidate manpower where possible and look for ways to work with commissioners and the union to properly pay and staff sheriff's office employees.

Hayburn and Ratzlaff echoed safety concerns, saying safety of the inmates would be a top priority during and after renovations.

All three candidates are generally in agreement on what items are being addressed first. Phase 1 of the renovations will focus on upgrades to security systems, including door locks, and will expand and update the infirmary into the outdoor recreation area while prepping the rest of the space for possible future work.

Ratzlaff's biggest concern with the work done early on is that he does not want to see the work being repeated further down the road in the renovations.

"What I want to make sure we don't do is Band-Aid some of these issues," Ratzlaff said.