BY DAVID GRANT LONG

Relations between Cortez officials and their Montezuma County counterparts, which have been somewhat strained over recent years, seemed markedly improved Tuesday during a city-council hearing in which the site plan for the new county jail was swiftly approved.

County Administrator Tom Weaver, after a brief presentation on the project, praised Planning Director Jeff Reinhart for his help smoothing out the wrinkles of the Planned Unit Development application, which requires a zoning change and compliance with myriad conditions of the city’s land-use code. (The actual ordinance authorizing the zoning change will be the subject of another hearing Feb. 8, but that is expected to be smooth sailing as well.)

And Mayor Joe Keck and other council members in turn lauded county officials for their cooperation and efforts to make the new jail and sheriff’s offices an attractive addition to the city’s infrastructure.

"This sets in stone that what’s good for the city is good for the county," observed councilwoman Cheryl Walkenhorst, "and what’s good for the county is good for the city." And a larger and more secure jail is certainly in the best interest of both entities, not to mention the inmates.

Sheriff Joey Chavez told the council that the current facility, which was built to hold 46 prisoners, regularly holds twice that number, with 113 cramming its cell blocks on one recent occasion.

The new jail, upon which work begins this spring, will initially have one pod containing 104 beds, Weaver explained, but by converting the old jail to a 72-bed "minimum-security" treatment center for non-violent prisoners and those with substance-abuse problems, the expansion is expected to take care of community needs for at least the next decade.

Two other similar-sized pods may be added in the future if needed without seeking further approval from the city under the arrangement, but would still need voter approval for additional funding, since the sales tax ends when the current project is paid for.

The $5.5 million jail complex is being funded with bonds that will cost about $6.2 million to pay off through a 0.45-cent county sales tax approved by voters last fall.

The county initially believed it would take 20 years to redeem the bonds, Weaver explained, but the revenue from the sales tax is running nearly double what was projected, and they may be paid off in as few as 12 years.

The complex will be located on the northwestern portion of a parcel of land the county owns just north of the Justice Building, stretching northwest from the intersection of Mildred and Empire streets. In return for building the road to the jail — a westward extension of Driscoll Street — the city will be given a price break on another 10-acre piece of the parcel along Mildred it wants to develop for a business park.

Councilman Bob Diederich suggested widening the street from 36 feet, the minimum required, to 40 feet suggested by city staff, but otherwise the plan was found acceptable.

Reinhart pointed out that the jail, which will have a Southwestern motif, will be located in a depression 20 feet lower than Empire Avenue and wouldn’t be very visible at any rate.

In other business, the council:

•Heard from Jim McBride, president of the Montezuma County Historical Preservation Board, about the need for a secure place to collect and store the many artifacts that had been collected by the defunct Historic Society and are now scattered throughout the area.

McBride suggested that if School District Re-1 moves to new administrative headquarters in the next few years, as is planned, the Calkins Building would be available for possible restoration as a museum and repository.

Keck, who recalled that he’d attended junior high in the old sandstone structure, said funds are tight for the next few years because of other projects, but then the city might consider such a move.