Public Safety Center progressing toward early May opening ...

Steady progress continues to be made in the construction process of the new Allamakee County Public Safety Center located north of Waukon along Highway 9 at the location of the former Makee Manor property. Allamakee County Sheriff Clark Mellick says the project continues to remain on track for a late April public open house and early May transition into the new facility, despite some limited weather delays during this past winter. Sheriff Mellick has also advised the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors that progress continues to be made on construction of the mezzanine area (pictured in the top photo at right), which will include a second level of inmate cells that had initially been proposed as a possible future expansion project but, instead, was recently approved by the Supervisors to be completed and funded using a portion of the remaining contingency funding for the overall project since that contingency fund balance remained in good shape with still well over $100,000 remaining after the mezzanine project. Project contractors are not anticipating much, if any, further contingency funding being needed to complete the project within its original schedule and budget parameters.

"The building is being constructed with the future in mind as a '100-year building' while keeping under budget," Sheriff Mellick noted. "In considering the best financial decisions for the County with timing being as good as can be with low interest rates, we decided to finish the building completely with the mezzanine to avoid higher construction costs and security issues later with operating the facility and having construction personnel on-site for what would have been a future expansion project."

Additional features of the facility nearing completion and pictured in the surrounding photos include the maximum security cells pictured in the center photo and the mandated exercise area that includes a shuttered skylight/window pictured in the bottom photo at right that can have that shutter opened and closed to meet mandated sunlight requirements when the room is being utilized by inmates. Standard photos by Joe Moses.