Okla. Juvenile Facility To Be Auctioned

POTEAU, Okla. After considering various options, the LeFlore County Public Buildings Authority has decided to offer the LeFlore County Juvenile Detention Center building at public auction through sealed bids.
 
Conditions of the proposed auction sale state the building must continue to operate as a juvenile facility, said Lance Smith, LeFlore County Commission chairman and Public Buildings Authority Trustee.
 
The countys only options were a long-term lease or a public auction.
 
Ownership of the building reverted to the county on March 13 when the bonds financing its construction were paid off.
 
The 10-bed juvenile facility, completed in 1995 and operated by Sequoyah Enterprises of Sallisaw, Okla., was financed through the Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs with the deed reversion agreement, Smith said.
 
Buildings Authority attorney Dru Warren is preparing the deed paperwork, and the county plans to survey the property before offering it at auction, County Clerk Kelli Ford said.
 
The state pays more than $100 a day per bed, and the county in which each detained child resides also pays a portion of the childs housing costs. In some months, the facility shows a profit, and in others it breaks even, Smith said.