SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson and members of the county council will ask residents to support a $507 million bond to help address homelessness, substance abuse, mental health and public safety needs.
The Salt Lake County Council voted 8-1 to put the bond before voters on the November ballot.
"We can solve some problems by maybe trying something different," Salt Lake County Council Chair Laurie Stringham said.
The bond would combine Salt Lake County's two jails into one and build a "Justice and Accountability Center" that includes increased bed space, modernized mental health facilities and a transitional unit for those about to be released. It's part of a proposal to tackle these issues the mayor has pushed in recent months.
"Our county jail is our largest mental health provider in the state," Mayor Wilson told reporters following the vote. "What this particular center does it takes people who are committing offenses that are nonviolent and nuisance crimes and crimes harming themselves, puts them in a center with wraparound services like housing support once they’re released, whether or not they’re supported with mental health and drug addicted counseling services or they can be released to a provider."
By combining Oxbow and the Salt Lake County jails, the county could address population growth demands and other issues. Oxbow is about 50 years old and near the end of its lifespan, the presentation said, and a $90 million investment would only extend its lift another 10 to 15 years.
"We’re seeing more and more people with significant mental illness in our custody and we really need to improve not only the environment but the number of beds we have available to help people address the mental health issues," said Salt Lake County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Matt Dumont.
During the council meeting, Mayor Wilson predicted the Oxbow Jail site could fetch as much as $20 million. As FOX 13 News first reported in June, the state has been looking for a site for a massive new homeless shelter. Wayne Niederhauser, the state's homelessness coordinator, told FOX 13 News following the meeting it could be a potential site. He showed up to Tuesday's Salt Lake County Council meeting to offer his support for the bond.
"This is about preserving the community we love and making sure that our family members and our community, our neighbors and friends who are suffering and interfacing with the criminal justice system have better outcomes," Mayor Wilson said.
The bond would add $58.94 onto the property tax bill of the average Salt Lake County home valued at around $602,000. Mayor Wilson negotiated it, earning bipartisan support from the Republican majority council. She also got support for the bond from Governor Spencer Cox and Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall.
But Salt Lake County Council member Sheldon Stewart cast the lone nay vote. He worried that a series of tax increases from a number of entities would overburden residents.
"Each year we keep coming to them and the well is going to dry," he said of residents. "It’s going to go dry and we may see more homelessness because we’re taking more from our residents."
The Utah Taxpayers Association, a tax watchdog group, told FOX 13 News it has taken no position on the bond yet but had concerns about a half-billion price tag.
Other members of the council disagreed, saying it is necessary to help address homelessness and crime.
"Is this the best time to bring this forward? I don’t know for sure," said Council member Dea Theodore. "But we have to do something."
Council member Suzanne Harrison insists it is a good investment.
"I'm hoping voters will support it because it’s the most fiscally responsible way to stop the cycle of what’s going on right now," she said.
A public hearing is scheduled for Sept. 17 at 4 p.m. to explain the bond and solicit resident feedback.
