Oxbow Jail to stay closed for now

The Oxbow Jail's doors will remain shuttered indefinitely.

Tuesday the Salt Lake County Council dashed Sheriff Jim Winder's hopes of opening up the facility once again.

Then the council shot down Mayor Peter Corroon's proposal to spruce the facility up just in case the county needs to open it up in an emergency situation soon.

"What are we going to do with these prisoners?" asked Councilman Jim Bradley, who at the very least wanted to allocate $610,000 for modernizations. "I don't quite get it, because Oxbow opening up or getting it ready provides the safety valve for what we want to do."

Republicans on the council said they didn't want to make any major moves with Oxbow until a criminal and social justice master plan is completed. The council ordered the master plan last week, and hopes it will be completed before next year's big budget decisions must be made.

The master plan will look at a variety of issues, including the council's alternatives to incarceration program. County officials want to "add more teeth" to the program, and have considered using the Oxbow Jail as a punishment to inmates who fail to follow through on treatment programs.

But some members of the council aren't convinced Oxbow is the right place to do that. That's why they want to wait for the master plan.

"I would rather see what the master plan says," Councilman Michael Jensen said.

Jensen said the council can use some of the $610,000 to pay for the master plan.

Somewhere in between the talk of opening or sprucing up the old jail, several Republicans entertained the idea of trying again to sell Oxbow. The master plan will look at that idea, too, Jensen said.

The county tried to sell the 552-bed jail to the state in 2001, but the deal fell through.

"I'm not convinced Oxbow is going to be the facility as it is now constituted, that we are going to need long-term," Jensen said. "If we need another pod, let's sell Oxbow and build another pod. I just don't think Oxbow is the right fit."

Ever the salesman, Winder couldn't convince the Republican-dominated council to open Oxbow, even though it's a "raging deal."

It would have cost $5.8 million to open up the jail, but Winder secured a deal with the U.S. Marshals Service to house 100 inmates at the jail for $2.2 million, lowering the county's potential costs by more than a third.

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com