Roseville, Calif.- About 150 people gathered Wednesday for a grand-opening ceremony at Placer County’s new jail – the third major building constructed at the Bill Santucci Justice Center in Roseville in the last 10 years.
“Today is a very, very historic day for Placer County,” Chairman Jack Duran of the Placer County Board of Supervisors told the audience.
Known formally as the South Placer Adult Correctional Facility, the 205,000-square-foot jail is located at 10800 Industrial Ave. The Santucci Center is west of State Route 65 between Blue Oaks and Sunset boulevards.
During Wednesday’s ceremony, Chairman Duran, Sheriff Edward N. Bonner and other speakers pointed with pride to Placer County’s progress in developing a criminal justice campus at the Santucci Center.
Placer County began its planning process more than 20 years ago and broke ground on the Santucci Center in 2005. Just west of the new jail is an 110,700-square-foot courthouse building completed in 2008. Further west is a 60,000-square-foot office building that opened at about the same time. The Probation Department and District Attorney’s Office are among the departments that have offices there.
Placer County Superior Court Presiding Judge Alan V. Pineschi told the crowd during Wednesday’s ceremony that the courthouse building has become a model for other agencies that are planning to build new courthouses.
The new jail includes 300 beds for medium and maximum security inmates and a separate facility that can house as many as 120 minimum security inmates. It was designed to meet Placer County’s jail needs as its population continues to grow.
During Wednesday’s ceremony, Chairman Duran noted it also provides flexibility to accommodate additional inmates who are the county’s responsibility because of public safety realignment. Under the state-mandated program, many inmates who would have been sentenced to state prison in the past now serve their sentences in county jails.
Sheriff Bonner emphasized the Sheriff’s Office has assembled a first-class team to operate the new jail. “We’re in good hands here,” he said, “I couldn’t be more proud of the people who are going to be working here.”
“We’re extremely proud of this facility,’ added Facility Services Director Mary Dietrich, emphasizing that the jail is a state-of-the-art facility designed to be highly functional and energy efficient.
Funding for the $105 million jail project came from capital facility impact fees paid by development projects and from General Fund revenue set aside over the years.
The project was designed so the jail can eventually be expanded to 320,000 square feet and 980 beds.
