The need to expand inmate capacity at county jails is greater than ever, yet there are many obstacles to making this happen quickly and efficiently. Fortunately, there are financing options and alternate project delivery methods that can overcome these hurdles.
Private detention is one of the solutions. It works because it affords a number of economic solutions to meet a variety of demanding needs. Privatization combined with alternative procurement accelerates and simplifies jail construction projects even further. Sundt’s current design-build jail construction project for the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) at the Red Rock Correctional Center in Eloy, Ariz., is a case in point.
The project will provide the State of Arizona with 500 additional beds, expandable to 1,000, within 15 months of the notice of award. The facility requires significant modification and expansion in order to meet the state’s need, and the work has to be done while the facility remains occupied.
Sundt has led the team in creating a project schedule that meets the required deadlines and durations through the development of phased design packages. The design-build delivery method has also enabled Sundt to maximize value for CCA. Excess contingencies can be eliminated through innovation (facilitated by early contractor involvement, highly qualified subs and an emphasis on solutions rather than problems). Upon design completion of the first bid package, the overage was reduced from seven percent to four percent. At the completion of the second bid package, the overage was reduced to less than one percent, and the final bid package returned the project to the original budget.
The project is also on track to be completed in time – in just 15 months.