Jessie Stensland reports from the Island County Commissioners’ workshop meeting of Wed., Mar. 12, 2025 for the Whidbey News-Times. Read the whole story.
The Island County Jail has reached the end of its useful life and renovations would be impractical and extremely expensive, according to a study completed by a consulting firm.
The only real solution is to build a new jail, the Island County Jail Feasibility Study shows. County officials haven’t decided where a new facility could be built.
The report presented to Island County commissioners at a workshop meeting this week held no surprises but confirmed problems officials have been pointing to for years.
All the commissioners agreed that a new jail is needed.
They Said It
In an interview, Island County Sheriff Rick Felici said several sites have been identified, but the best option might be to raze the current annex building — which includes the jail, annex office space and the juvenile detention facility — and reconstruct a bigger and better space on the footprint.
“We keep regurgitating reasons, but the reality is it’s worn out,” Felici said.
Commissioner Janet St. Clair said the problematic facility impedes the jail’s ability to rehabilitate offenders and help them to become productive members of the community.
Commissioner Jill Johnson said people who may not care about the welfare of inmates should at least care about the staff.
“You shouldn’t have to spend 12 hours of your day in a dark dungeon kind of a vibe working with a difficult population,” she said.
“I think the harder questions are going to be, how much does it cost and where is it going to be?” Felici said.
