Clay County

Inside Clay County’s 10-year budget to lower crime and improve safety

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — We’re getting a glimpse of what Clay County might do over the next 10 years to lower crime and improve safety.

County commissioners on Tuesday looked into the costs of providing more money for the Sheriff’s Office and a new County jail.

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“For us, it’s a safety issue,” Sheriff Michelle Cook said.

Commissioners held a budget workshop at their administration building to go over how proposed projects would be funded over a 10-year time span.

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Improving safety was a big topic. Cook said in order to keep deputies on the road, the county needs to put more money toward patrol cars and other vehicles, keeping in mind their mileage and maintenance cost.

“We have the specialty vehicles which will be your negotiator trucks, SWAT trucks or boats, then our unmarked vehicles -- they have the longer lifespan and then we have our marked cars,” Cook said.

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All proposed projects fall under the county’s Capital Improvement Projects. They are projects meant to improve county facilities and infrastructures. The county is also considering plans for a new jail. Last year, more than $7 million dollars went to expand the current jail to help deal with overcrowding. It was a temporary fix.

Cook suggested a “campus style complex.” Moving Sheriff’s office personnel to an operation center would be built at the jail. Other projects planned for the next 10 years include bridge improvements and new sidewalks.

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