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Allen County Commissioners settle on "hard cost" number for jail project

Drone footage of work on the Allen County Jail construction project from December.
Weigand Construction
/
YouTube
Drone footage of work on the Allen County Jail construction project from December.

The Allen County Commissioners approved the final “hard costs” price for the new Allen County Jail, and set a construction deadline of November 2027.

The nearly $268 million in hard construction costs make up the majority of the price tag for the project. They include items like concrete, steel, masonry, parking lots, and mechanical equipment.

Weigand Construction officials told the commissioners Friday that the project was coming in $50 million under initial estimates.

The agreement signed Friday morning sets the costs for the duration of the project unless the county wishes to change something in the project.

In November, the county closed on the bonds for the jail.

The county committed to building a new jail on the site of the old International Harvester factory as the solution to a federal court order addressing issues of safety and overcrowding at the aging downtown jail.

The project has drawn repeated opposition from those arguing against its necessity in general and those concerned about the new location and the cost.

Rebecca manages the news at WBOI. She joined the staff in December 2017, and brought with her nearly two decades of experience in print journalism, including 15 years as an award-winning reporter for the Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne.