Site Selection

Howard County purchased approximately 48 acres of land near Dixon Road and Markland Avenue in Kokomo just west of the current county jail as the site for the new jail facility. The property was purchased for $2.2 million following two independent appraisals to ensure the acquisition was at fair market value.

· Read the executed purchase agreement  Click Here

· Watch the drone flyover video  Click Here

Financing

Update 1 (October 23, 2025): Partnership with City of Kokomo Reduces Tax Impact

Howard County announced an agreement with the city of Kokomo to help reduce the financial burden of building the new county jail.

Under the agreement, the city of Kokomo will contribute its share of revenue generated by a 0.4% increase in the public safety local income tax (LIT) rate to the county for a two-year period, providing approximately $6.7 million to support the project.

This partnership allows the county to reduce the originally anticipated public safety LIT increase from 1.3% to 0.5%, lowering the estimated cost for taxpayers by two-thirds.

Revenue generated by the public safety LIT increase will be used exclusively to fund the annual debt service on bonds issued for construction of the new county jail.

Read more Click Here

Pre-Construction

Update 1 (January 27, 2025): County Releases Request for Proposals

Howard County released a request for proposals (RFP) for a build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract to provide for the design, financing and construction of the new county jail.

· Read the RFP Click Here

Update 2 (March 3, 2025): Evaluation Committee Recommends Garmong as Developer

Following a competitive review process, the Howard County Jail Evaluation Committee recommended Garmong as the developer for the new county jail project.

The committee evaluated proposals from three respondents and conducted interviews before scoring each team across key criteria, including technical expertise, project experience, team composition, project approach and timeline.

Based on this evaluation, Garmong was selected for its experience with the build-operate-transfer delivery model, strong project team and proven track record delivering similar public safety facilities.

· Read Garmong’s proposal Click Here

Update 3 (March 17, 2025): County Hires Garmong as Developer

Howard County hired Garmong Construction as the developer for the new county jail project.

· Read the executed agreement Click Here

• News release: Howard County Commissioners Release Request for Proposals as Preparations for Construction of New County Jail Begin (Jan. 22, 2025) [link]
• Press release: LIT Jail Tax (Oct. 23, 2025) [link]

Overview

The Howard County jail was built in 1992 and opened in 1993 as a direct supervision facility with a capacity of 256 beds. Over time, expansions added 108 beds, bringing the current capacity to 364.

While these additions helped address growing demand, the facility was not designed to meet today’s population levels, operational needs or safety standards. As the jail has aged, both capacity constraints and facility conditions have created increasing challenges for staff and inmates.

New Admissions

Average Daily Population

With the jail operating at or near capacity in recent years, staff are managing a more complex and demanding environment. Higher populations can increase strain on operations, supervision and facility resources, all of which can contribute to a higher likelihood of rule violations and incidents. At the same time, the age of the facility and many of its components create additional safety challenges for both staff and inmates.

The DLZ Feasibility and Needs Assessment

Howard County commissioned an independent feasibility study and needs assessment of the county jail from DLZ in February 2023.

The report concluded that the county jail was, in general, in “fair to poor condition,” that many of its components are outdated, in need of replacement or inadequate, and that “significantly more” beds are needed.

Additionally, the report found that to build a new 1,056 bed jail would cost between $198 million and $210 million. Other options included in the report were less expensive. Expanding the current county jail to 400 beds would cost between $35 million and $40 million, and building a new 880 bed jail would cost between $140 million and $150 million.

· Read the DLZ feasibility study and needs assessment Click Here

Renovation and Addition Estimate

Howard County hired Garmong in August 2024 to provide a conceptual budget to renovate the county jail and to add additional beds. Construction costs, not including soft costs, was estimated to be $86 million.

Howard County Jail and Justice System Timeline

Since 2006, the county has made several changes to the judicial system, including opening a work release center to help reduce recidivism, creating a drug court and mental health court, and creating magistrate court with a dedicated prosecutor and public defender to help expedite the judicial process.

The county has also completed multiple renovation projects at the jail to expand bed capacity and improve inmate conditions.

• View the full timeline [link]

Since 2006, Howard County has implemented a range of strategies to manage the county jail population and reduce pressure on the existing facility.

These efforts include opening a work release center, establishing drug and mental health courts, and creating a magistrate court with a dedicated prosecutor and public defender to help expedite case processing. The county has also completed multiple renovation and expansion projects to increase capacity and improve conditions within the existing county jail.

Despite these sustained efforts, the county jail has continued to face capacity and operational challenges.

As these challenges persisted, legal action followed.

In 2023 and 2024, two class action lawsuits were filed in federal court alleging overcrowding and unsanitary conditions in the county jail. One of the lawsuits was voluntarily dismissed without prejudice, while the second remained ongoing until a settlement agreement was reached through mediation.

The settlement requires the county to construct a new jail facility.

Timeline (2006-2024)

Over nearly two decades, Howard County has implemented a wide range of operational, judicial and facility improvements to manage the county jail population and delay or avoid the need for a new facility.

2024

• Staffing & Operations: Hired additional corrections officers, increasing total staffing to 50
• Staffing & Operations: Increased salaries to improve retention and address staffing shortages
• Staffing & Operations: Moved approximately 80 inmates to other counties to reduce population
• Planning & Evaluation: Hired Garmong and Envoy to evaluate renovation and new construction options
• Planning & Evaluation: Engaged Baker Tilly for financial analysis
• Planning & Evaluation: Conducted assessment with the National Institute for Corrections
• Facility Improvements: Released RFQ to replace the jail’s HVAC system
• Facility & Site: Evaluated property adjacent to the jail for a potential new site
• Facility & Site: Submitted purchase agreement for new jail site
• Facility Improvements: Examined potential facility upgrades, including doors and infrastructure
• Legal & External: ACLU filed additional lawsuit related to jail conditions
• Legal & External: Reached settlement agreement requiring action

2023

• Planning & Evaluation: Hired DLZ to conduct feasibility study and needs assessment
• Planning & Evaluation: Conducted renovation assessment and explored expansion options
• Planning & Evaluation: Designed potential 80-bed temporary housing unit
• Planning & Evaluation: Visited jails in Hendricks and Hancock counties to evaluate newer facilities
• Legal & External: ACLU filed lawsuit related to jail conditions
• Staffing & Operations: Approved local income tax increase to support jail operations

2021

• Facility Improvements: Completed final phase of multi-year roof replacement project
• Facility Improvements: Replaced materials in padded cells
• Facility Improvements: Added storage for inmate property following state inspection recommendations

2020

• Staffing & Operations: Conducted staffing study recommending an increase in corrections officers from 39 to 54

2019

• Facility Improvements: Renovated jail intake area to improve safety for staff and inmates
• Staffing & Operations: Implemented sign-on bonuses to improve staffing and retention
• Judicial & Courts: Opened new magistrate court to expedite case processing

2018

• Judicial & Courts: Opened work release center
• Judicial & Courts: Established mental health court and veterans court

2013

• Facility Improvements: Converted indoor recreation space into dormitory housing, adding 36 beds and increasing total capacity to 364

2011

• Judicial & Courts: Established reentry court

2007

• Judicial & Courts: Established drug court

2006

• Judicial & Courts: Created Superior Court 4

Despite these sustained efforts, the county jail has continued to face capacity and operational challenges due to increasing demand and the limitations of the existing facility.