Johnson County Sheriff: Iowa City Council’s comments prompted decision to end support of shared law enforcement facility

IOWA CITY — Johnson County Sheriff Brad Kunkel said comments made by Iowa City Council members this week prompted his decision to rescind his support for a law enforcement facility that would be shared by his department and Iowa City Police.

Kunkel hosted a press conference Thursday morning to explain a letter he sent to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors Wednesday afternoon. In the letter, Kunkel wrote that he does not “see a viable path forward for a joint facility” and his support has “ended.”

The city council discussed the proposed facility Tuesday night, and ultimately voted 4-3 to adopt a resolution to begin drafting articles of incorporation for a joint law enforcement facility. Kunkel pointed to the comments by council members who did not support the resolution as the reason he changed course.

“I think if you look at the majority of the council and the position they had and they voted and the position of the minority, I don't want to also see a process going forward that is fraught with people trying to undermine it the whole time. I don't think that's a good message to the voters, either,” said Kunkel.

The city council’s vote was in response to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors’ formal invitation for the council to weigh in on a joint project.

The sheriff does not have direct voting power in the decision about a future law enforcement facility, but the Board of Supervisors plans to discuss the issue at a special work session next Wednesday.

“'I’m sure they were maybe a little caught off guard yesterday, but it was an important decision that I felt I needed to make in the moment and communicate to the board of supervisors so we could stop spending any more time on a joint facility and move forward what's really in the best in the best interest of the people that work here, the people of the county,” Kunkel said Thursday.

The next Iowa City Council meeting will be Oct. 7.

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Joint facility offers potential for millions in savings

Conversations about a joint law enforcement facility began as both entities started to contemplate the future of their respective facilities.

A feasibility study has put the estimated cost of a joint facility at around $106 million, and reported that sharing would save around 16,000 square feet of space and $9.4 million in construction costs, compared to the space needs and cost of each entity pursuing construction of its own facility.

However, the estimated savings is dependent on site location, number of beds in the jail and overall scope of the project, none of which have been finalized.

Iowa City Council members Laura Bergus, Mazahir Salih and Oliver Weilein voted against the resolution Tuesday night. Bergus and Salih noted that a new facility for the police department is something that should be considered independent of the sheriff’s office and jail.

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Weilein specifically called out the sheriff and voiced concern that members of the Iowa City Police Department interacting with Sheriff’s Office employees in shared spaces could have a negative effect on the culture of the Iowa City department.

“I would rather Iowa City have more direct impact over the culture that we have already made here in Iowa City for our police department, and not necessarily giving the power to a sheriff's department which has an elected official, so just kind of has more intrinsic power,” Weilein said at the council meeting earlier this week.

Weilein’s concerns about department culture were not widely shared across the council or city staff.

“I want council to know that I'm not going to put a price on culture. All right, $10 million $15 million, 20 million whatever that construction savings is, if I think it's going to negatively impact the culture of any staff unit here in a way that strays from whatever values this board sets I'm not going to bring it to you ...” said Iowa City Manager Geoff Fruin.

Kunkel, on Thursday, said those comments influenced his decision.

“I have to think about some of the positions and statements elected officials have made, and is that a relationship that I want to pursue and hitch our wagon to, if you will, for people who openly don't value law enforcement,” Kunkel said.

Iowa City mayor opposes location of proposed facility

A potential location for a new facility has been identified, where the Iowa City Transit Headquarters sit today, near the intersection of Riverside Drive and Highway 6. The city already owns the land and is in the process of developing a new transit facility, with the hopes of it being constructed in a new location.

City staff previously identified the land as a possible future location for other public buildings. Both Kunkel and Iowa City Police Chief Dustin Liston said the location would be suitable for a joint law enforcement facility. The city council has not voted on that proposal or committed the land to the facility.

Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague on Tuesday voiced his long-held opposition to building a law enforcement facility at that site.

“The location was one of the big pieces that made a joint facility appealing, not only the county, but to the city,” Kunkel said Thursday. “However, there's never going to be an agreement on that, and it's time to move forward.”

‘I'm confident that we can reach the 60 percent voter approval’

A bond referendum to fund a joint law enforcement facility would require 50 percent approval from voters, as opposed to the 60 percent required if the county or city alone were to introduce a bond.

The county’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee, which includes the Board of Supervisors, has been meeting for nearly a year with plans to put a bond issue before voters in November 2026.

A survey of Johnson County residents, conducted by the University of Iowa’s Center for Social Science, in cooperation with the Board of Supervisors, showed 74 percent of the 750 respondents would support a referendum for a new county law enforcement facility. When those respondents were given more information about the project, approval increased to more than 80 percent of respondents.

“I'm confident that we can reach the 60 percent voter approval threshold for a stand-alone sheriff's office in jail, and I look forward to going down that road as we when the time comes,” Kunkel said.

Download: Kunkel Letter Supervisors 091725.pdf

Comments: megan.woolard@thegazette.com

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