Klickitat County Commissioners got an update from staff Tuesday afternoon on where they are at in the fact-finding on the future of the Klickitat County Jail and whether a contract with NORCOR in The Dalles to house inmates is feasible.  That came after an emotionally charged morning session with over two hours of public comment that ranged from praising heading toward closing the jail as proactive to condemning the Commission for not doing enough to provide the jail what it needs, and jail employees who felt insulted that commissioners had not talked to them to hear what they go through on a day-to-day basis.  Staff said they have contacted many stakeholders but they have some steps still to take, and Commission Chair Lori Zoller said they weren’t ready to present any kind of resolution.

The morning began with Zoller and Anderson making statements as to why they had moved forward with a motion during a special meeting last Friday to enter into negotiations with NORCOR.  Anderson said he could not comment on the pending legal cases stemming from the jail and contract negotiations with corrections officers, but said he had been talking to stakeholders for a number of months, and shared a financial analysis of the jail that shows a projected $635,000 deficit for 2024, noting the County cannot continue with the status quo.  But Commissioner Dan Christopher said that he had no knowledge of what the other commissioners were doing in regards to the jail before Friday’s meeting, and called moving to close the jail a rush to judgement.  Commissioners did ask for staff to provide updates on their jail research at their weekly Tuesday meetings.