Gage County town hall launches new plans to expand sheriff’s office and detention center

BEATRICE, Neb. (KLKN) – Nearly 100 people piled into the auditorium at Beatrice High School on Wednesday night to hear from the Gage County Sheriff’s Office.

The town hall focused on the county’s plans to expand the Gage County detention center and Sheriff’s office.

The theme of the town hall was public participation, encouraging community feedback in several ways.

A video of the cells and beds used by inmates depicted the jail’s current condition. It also showed areas used by staff, such as the space used for their investigations team and intake.

The goals were then clearly outlined: to house all county inmates, retain and possibly expand staff and spend dollars on amenities such as beds.

The project’s principal architect, Jeff Lane, is working on the plan in collaboration with Davis Designs.

He says what’s updated is also dependent on what the community wants.

“Is it about the dollars? Is it about where it’s located? What are those things that we need to make sure of as we begin the design of this building?” said Lane.

“Or, look at something new in their current facility that’s going to meet their needs for the next 20 or 30 years.”

Sheriff Millard Gustafson says Wednesday’s town hall is just the beginning.

“I’m very pleased with the turnout for the first night,” said Gustafson.

“We’ll discuss tonight, we’ll get input from them as well as vice versa, and start going from there, give us some guidance, kind of what they want to expect to see.”

When asked who in the audience had toured the jail, nearly twenty percent of attendees raised their hands.

The presenters, all serious about the feedback they want, set up poster boards around the auditorium so that people could write their concerns.

Patty Nicholson tells Channel 8 her reasons for coming.

“I can understand the need for a jail for our community, but I don’t want it to turn into a place where we are housing juveniles or people waiting to become citizens,” said Nicholson.

Scott Spilker is a lifelong Beatrice resident and is now on the jail committee.

“Our current jail has the shelf life of 5 possibly 10 years, so we’re going to have to do something,” said Spilker.

The next Gage County town hall meeting will take place on Mar. 6, also at Beatrice High School.