Lucas County Jail options include move to state prison - ToledoNewsNow.com: News, Weather & Sports for Toledo, OH

Lucas County Jail options include move to state prison

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Posted by Holly Roney - email
Reporting by Rob Wiercinski - bio | email
The state prison in North Toledo. The state prison in North Toledo.
TOLEDO, OH (Toledo News Now) -

One of the options to be explored in an upcoming Lucas County Jail feasibility study is using a section of the state prison in North Toledo that's no longer being used, according to Sheriff John Tharp and Commissioner Pete Gerken.

Gerken said that's just one of many options to be considered for the best use of taxpayer money moving forward.

"A mothballed asset the state has right here in Toledo, the ‘honor farm' at the Toledo correctional prison in North Toledo," Gerken said. "Part of that is closed…A lot of infrastructure is already there. It's a 500-bed building that was used for corrections that is now vacant. It's already been used as a prison, takes some of the neighborhood sting out of it."

Gerken said other options include building a new jail, building a new jail with a municipal court component with the City of Toledo, and making major repairs at the current jail. He expects the study to take six months to complete, and he also expects a decision about the jail to be made before the end of the year.