Stearns County to Present Design Plans and Begin Land Negotiations for New $325 Million Criminal Justice Center

(KNSI) – Stearns County is getting ready to negotiate for land and show its design plans for the new Criminal Justice Center.

The board of commissioners is holding a work session at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday to provide more information on the $325 million project for a new facility that would house a jail, courts, county attorney’s office and sheriff’s office. The meeting will be in the administration building in downtown St. Cloud.

The county wants to build the new center in the 7400 block of Ridgewood Road in St. Joseph Township. The land is adjacent to the St. Cloud city limits and would be annexed into town. According to County Administrator Mike Williams, it’s one of three sites the county is looking at and considered the most preferred. After unveiling the design, the board will go into a closed session to begin negotiations for the land.

In November, voters approved a 3/8th cent sales tax to cover the cost of construction for the project. The tax will be collected for the next 30 years. Since the election, the county has been working on final schematics and designs.

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