New Marshall County Jail Doors to Open Soon
By Rachel Leber
MADILL, Okla. — Construction on the new Marshall County Jail in Madill is complete, and while the doors have not officially opened yet, the Marshall County Sheriff’s office hosted an open house on March 24 to let the public have a view into the new space.
While construction on the new jail is complete, the jail does not yet have an official date for opening — though it is expected to take place in a matter of weeks, according to Henry Walker, jail administrator at the Marshall County Sheriff’s office. “The county is still awaiting inspections from the fire marshall,” said Walker. “Once the inspection is complete, the keys to the building will be handed over for the official opening.”
AIP (Architects in Partnership) based out of Norman, Okla., was the architect on the project, with Mid Plains Construction Inc., based out of Mead, Okla., serving as the general contractor. Construction began two years ago, and the goal of the project was to make jail processes more efficient for staff, keeping contraband out of the jail and making more space for inmates, according to an article from KTEN. The budget for the project was $5 million.
The new jail has space for 110 inmates — which is close to double that of the old jail — and will feature video visitation as well as more natural sunlight, according to an article from KXII. The design of the new jail is configured as a pod system — in sharp contrast to the linear design of the old jail. Each pod has space for 10 inmates, and one-way glass will allow staff to see into the pods, while simultaneously preventing the inmates from seeing out.
The setup for the new jail will enable staff to be able to monitor inmates from a central control tower — which will minimize the need for staff to patrol the hallways and spend countless hours trying to keep an eye on all of the goings-on at the facility.
Design changes like this will make the new jail as cost-efficient as possible, which was a priority throughout the design process, according to Danny Cryer, sheriff of Marshall County in a recent interview with the Daily Ardmoreite.