MARQUETTE, Mich. (AP) - After a slight lull in construction during the holiday season, the $1.6 million renovation project at the Marquette County Jail is well underway and on schedule to be completed in spring or early summer.
“Renovations haven’t been done since it was built in 1976,” Undersheriff Mike Klein told The Mining Journal ( https://bit.ly/1ZfsGGd ). “We’re bringing it up to code. Every cell here is being renovated.”
A major update to the 40-year-old facility includes inverting the doors of each cell so they open outward instead of into the cell to ensure the safety of both the staff and inmates.
“When pushing the doors in, an inmate could barricade themselves in, and it’s hard for the staff to get in there,” Klein said. “There is also a hanging hazard.”
A system of electronic locks is also being installed, which gives staff the ability to lock and unlock all doors simultaneously from a control room. Keys will be utilized as backup form of entry, said Deputy Ryan Kainulainen.
Other updates to improve safety and security include improved camera systems, which will give jail staff 360 degree views of the general population areas, as well as individual views of each maximum security cell, and an updated fire alarm system.
During construction, which began in October, the sheriff’s office has been able to utilize the also newly renovated Marquette County Community Corrections Detention Center in Chocolay Township to house displaced inmates.
“It’s really nice to have that flexibility,” Klein said. “It takes the pressure and stress off the main staff.”
Funding for the project was approved last year by the Marquette County Board.
County Board Chairman Gerald Corkin said at the body’s regular meeting recently that the jail renovation project is among one of the major things he is looking forward to in 2016.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Corkin said.
Kainulainen said the renovations are being well-received and the process is moving along better than he expected.
“It already looks a lot different,” he said. “Aside from a little more noise and people, it’s going smoothly.”
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Information from: The Mining Journal, https://www.miningjournal.net
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