Construction of a 96-bed temporary addition to the overcrowded Kane County Jail should begin soon now that the County Board has approved the $1.3 million project.
The addition is designed to house medium-security inmates and will free other areas of the jail off Fabyan Parkway in Geneva to be reconfigured into maximum-security housing.
Jail officials say the extra space is needed to alleviate serious overcrowding until a permanent structure is in place. The jail is designed to hold a maximum of 302 prisoners, but has routinely housed more than 400 in 1995.
On Nov. 7, Kane County voters will decide the fate of a $51 million bond issue to build a 576-bed permanent addition.
The board last week also formally approved a 2-year contract with Springfield-based Invision Telecom for inmate telephone service at the jail. The pact will guarantee the county at least $350,000 in revenue the first year.
Sheriff Ken Ramsey has asked a board committee to earmark that money to purchase 10 to 15 new squad cars, but so far he has received no promises from the board.
Under the contract, which nearly doubles the county’s share of the pie, Kane is guaranteed 48 percent of gross revenue from inmate telephone use. Prisoners can only make outgoing collect calls and a $2.56 surcharge is added to each call.