Johnson County justice center project in doubt over money dispute

IOWA CITY – The Johnson County Board of Supervisors may ditch plans for a November vote on a justice center because of a dispute over how to pay for the facility.

The surprising twist calls into question the future of a project county officials and the local criminal justice community consider a priority and have spent the past several years discussing.

The supervisors held a work session Wednesday night to talk about how to pay for the building. Last week, they agreed to a preliminary plan for an estimated $48.1 million facility that would include a new jail and courtrooms west of the current courthouse.

Four of the supervisors said they would be comfortable asking voters to approve a bond referendum of about $44 million, with the county budgeting for the rest of the money.

Supervisor Terrence Neuzil said he wanted the county to find more savings in its future budgets and bond for about $39 million – the figure the county has been focused on for about the past year.

Neuzil maintained that stance Wednesday, supervisors said. The other supervisors were not willing to bend that far.

“To me, I think we should be honest with the taxpayers (about the cost) and bond for that,” Supervisor Pat Harney said.

The supervisors want unanimous support behind the plan they take to the public, saying any opposition from board members would be used by opponents of the project.

“I am not interested in voting for a project of this magnitude that the five supervisors can't agree is worthy of the voters considering it,” Supervisor Janelle Rettig said.

She and board Chairman Rod Sullivan said they thought Neuzil, who is up for re-election this year, was politicking for voters.

“Frankly, I feel like I'm being held hostage, and I'm just not willing to play that game,” said Sullivan, who along with Harney also is up for re-election.

Neuzil could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.

The county's criminal justice coordinating committee has a meeting scheduled for next week, and Sullivan said he wants to keep that meeting and see where things go from there. He and other supervisors said the future of the project is in doubt at this point.

Last week, all five supervisors said they wanted to put the bond referendum on the November ballot, although official action on that has not yet happened.

The justice center is intended to provide relief to the overcrowded and unsafe conditions at the current jail and courthouse.