Officials dedicate new jail; public gets tours of facility

The old county jail was built in 1976.
By MARY GRZEBIENIAK
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
MERCER, Pa. -- The public got a chance Wednesday to get a close-up look at Mercer County's new $22 million state-of-the-art jail.
About 150 people came out for the formal dedication of the facility, and after that ceremony, public tours of the jail began.
The 110,000-square-foot, one-story, smoke-free facility, on Thompson Road in Findley Township, about a mile from the county courthouse, is designed to hold 286 inmates.
It boasts eight cell pods or living areas that allow violent offenders to be separated from others, indoor exercise areas, a medical department with a dental and examining room, an isolation cell, two security control rooms, a booking department, fully equipped kitchen, staff training room, video arraignment room, a fire control system, generator backup, glass-enclosed visitation area, as well as numerous offices and outdoor security devices.
Officials said the facility's opening will save the $1.2 million the county has been spending annually to house inmates in other jails because the number of county inmates has long exceeded the capacity of the South Diamond Street jail, built in 1976.
Inmates will be moved into the new jail sometime this month.
Those involved
Deputy Warden Erna Craig, who coordinated the transition team overseeing the move to the new jail, thanked team members Phillip Hartsock, Counselor Michael Applegarth and Facility Manager Michael Lytle for their work.
The building architect was R. Robert Kimball and Associates, Ebensburg. The general contractor was C & amp;M Contracting Inc., Pittsburgh.
Others businesses involved were Blackhawk Neff, New Castle (electrical contractors); Enders Plumbing and Heating Co., Kittanning (heating and air-conditioning); Guy's Mechanical Systems Inc., Rochester (mechanical systems); and Willo Products Company Inc., Decatur, Ala. (detention equipment).
District Attorney James Epstein, who is county prison board president, commented that the deteriorating state of the old jail made "crisis management a part of day-to-day management."
Other board members are President Judge Francis Fornelli, Sheriff William Romine Jr., Controller Thomas Amundsen and commissioners Brian Beader, Michele Brooks and Olivia Lazor. The warden is Jeff Gill.
Other dignitaries at the dedication ceremony were state Sen. Bob Robbins and state Reps. Dick Stevenson and Mike Gruitza, as well as representatives sent by Gov. Ed Rendell, U.S. Rep. Phil English, and Pa. Rep. Rod Wilt.
Also on hand were former and current county officials, common pleas judges and district justices.