PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Interim City Manager Mimi Terry has proposed moving the city's jail off of the waterfront in her proposed budget for the 2024 fiscal year.
Under the Capital Improvement Program part of the budget, Terry proposes the city spend $125,000 to begin the process of relocating the jail off of the waterfront. The first year would be a study of the idea with more information to follow once the study is complete, a city spokesperson said.
Subsequent years call for more robust spending, including $25 million in 2026 and 2027 for a total project cost of $56,125,000.
In the budget document, city staffers write, "The city recognizes its obligation to provide a jail for the City Sheriff to safely incarcerate individuals."
The proposal does not provide any potential locations for a new jail, but says the city is looking at an already constructed building as a possibility to reduce the overall cost.
The city has been eyeing redeveloping the area for years because the jail sits on the city's waterfront.
In 2019, the city put condemned stickers on the jail, prompting a legal back and forth between the Sheriff and the city, which ended in 2021 with the city council voting to drop the case.
At the time, the city wanted the inmates at the jail to be transferred to Hampton Roads Regional Jail, which is also in Portsmouth and where the city pays for some inmates to be housed.
In a statement to News 3 Wednesday, Sheriff Michael Moore said, "I think relocating the jail and building a new jail is a positive move In the right direction. This has been a lengthy process and I’m glad we all agree the time has come to relocate and build a new jail."
Several city council members, including Mayor Shannon Glover, declined to comment Wednesday.
Glover told News 3 he wanted more information from city staff before commenting.
City council members are reviewing the budget over the next few months before voting in May.
