The St. Charles County Jail has been going over major renovations this summer. The $40 million project began in March and will take place over two phases.
As the summer sun reaches its peak, so does the intensity of the construction at the St. Charles County Jail. The project, aimed at expanding and modernizing the aging facility, is unfolding under intense June skies.
Heavy machinery rumbles across the site, breaking the monotonous hum of cicadas with the clatter of jackhammers and the steady thrum of bulldozers. Dust clouds rise with every step, mingling with the hot, sticky air, while the scent of tar and fresh concrete permeates the surroundings.
This ambitious project is not just about bricks and mortar; it represents a significant investment in the future of the county’s correctional facilities.
When built over 30 years ago, the facility was designed for 218 prisoners. Today, it currently holds around 400 accused criminals awaiting trial
“This is a necessary need,” Corrections Director Dan Keen said. “Most (of the inmates) are returning home. They could be your neighbor, your loved one. We need to meet the needs to make them better than when they came in. So, anything we can do right now to deal with our population and make it safer for our staff that’s what we need to do.”
The facility at the corner of Monroe and North Second Street, across from the state circuit courthouse, currently holds some 400 accused criminals awaiting trial.
Construction on the $40 million project began in March and will unfold in two phases.
Phase One converts a work release area, which has not been used for several years, to a direct supervision detention unit. When complete, the fifth floor will bring the jail’s total capacity up to 516 detainees.
Phase Two, which could start as soon as this fall, adds a mental health and substance abuse unit on the third floor with 60 more beds. Keen said most of their inmates arrive with some kind of drug, alcohol or mental health problems.
“About 86% of our population suffer from that, and with the state hospitals closing down across the country, those individuals are at our doorstep, and we need to be prepared to deal with them when they come in,” Keen says. “We need to make sure we’re caring for them the best we can and try to make them better before they return back to society – or go to trial.”
The work currently underway on Phase One also includes creating a new storage warehouse and kitchen.
“Our equipment is maxed out,” Keen said. “We wanted to build a kitchen that not only meets the needs of our facility now, but for future growth. If we end up going up to 600 or 700 inmates, we will have the room to meet those needs.”
The storage warehouse will hold blankets, mattresses and dry goods. Under national standards, Keen says the jail must have 14 days’ worth of supplies in case of a major disaster.
The county referenced a study of how to expand the capacity of the jail and found that the first two phases could be accomplished by renovating the existing structure. The study did indicate that, should there be need for further expansion, it would need to be done by constructing an addition to the building.
Keen noted that all of these modifications are to increase the efficiency of the building and ensure the safety of staff and those housed within it.
The St. Charles County Jail has been going over major renovations this summer. The $40 million project began in March and will take place over two phases.
In May, an incarcerated person died in the St. Charles County Jail, which led to an investigation by the county police and the county medical examiner’s office.
According to Keen, the individual arrived at the jail on May 22 and was detoxing from fentanyl and other drugs.
Around 3:30 a.m., the individual got out of his bunk to use the bathroom in his cell. When corrections officers made their routine wellness checks, they noticed he’d not returned to his bunk and found him unresponsive.
Newly incarcerated individuals are checked every 15 minutes around the clock, Keen said, and the man was in a single cell by himself and police claim there were no signs of foul play.
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