The Gadfly is a series of letters offering commentary on local issues and published in the Warrensburg Gazette.

Dear Editor

Johnson County needs a new $5 million jail, we're told, to house up to 125 prisoners. The county could have bought the 200-bed private jail over by Holden for about $3.6 million. The reasons for not purchasing it, as I've read, include the fact that it would have required some modification to house high-security prisoners and to include office space, as well as the cost to transport prisoners back and forth to Warrensburg.

The current jail, in the old Safeway store just off the Courthouse square, is certainly inadequate. I don't doubt that we'll be faced with a vote for new taxes for a replacement sometime in the not-too-distant future. The success of any jail bond issue will depend on how good a job the Sheriff and County Commission do on convincing the voters that their solution is the most frugal one. Here are some questions they'll have to answer:

• What would be the actual difference in purchase and construction costs between the Holden facility and one in Warrensburg, including debt service?
• What would be the difference in staffing levels and costs over the useful life?
• What would be the difference in life cycle maintenance and utility costs?
• What would be the relative projected income from renting extra space to other jurisdictions?
• What would be the cost of reducing the capacity of the current jail and contracting to house the overflow at the Holden facility?

The County Commission will ultimately make the decision on if and when a jail project should proceed. Meanwhile, I wonder why we're paying other counties $65 to $70 a day to house overflow prisoners in other counties, when Kansas City will pay $36.50 per day at the Holden facility.