SHARON City to reopen its own jail Sunday

The city says it can run its own jail for less than it's been paying.
SHARON, Pa. -- The city will reopen its jail Sunday.
That's the target date for the city to drop out of the Shenango Valley Regional Lock-Up program, which operates a jail at the Farrell municipal building.
Sharon City Council, on a recommendation from Mayor David O. Ryan, voted in February to end the city's seven-year affiliation with the regional lockup, saying it can run its own jail for less than the $41,000 Sharon paid to house prisoners at the regional lockup last year.
Withdrawal required a 90-day notice, putting the effective date at June 1.
Sharon is already paying police clerks to staff the police department 24 hours a day on weekdays. They will double as jail guards at no extra expense to monitor any prisoners in the city jail.
The city will incur some additional operating costs if it has to call out clerks to monitor prisoners Saturday or Sunday.
Savings estimate
Ryan estimated the savings at $15,000 to $20,000, but James DeCapua, executive director of Mercer County Regional Council of Governments, which runs the regional lockup, said it might not be that high.
He said Sharon paid only $33,000 to house prisoners last year, not the $41,000 that Sharon officials contend. Departments housing prisoners there are charged $10 per hour per prisoner.
DeCapua said there are no plans to change operations at the regional jail and the loss of Sharon's participation won't have a great effect on the facility.
Once basic insurance and other fixed costs are met, the lockup functions on a pay-as-you-go plan. If there are no prisoners in the jail, there are no jail attendants on duty, he said.