Municipal Jail Design Options & Site Selection Factors

• Seattle has two options when it comes to the design of a new municipal jail:
• Low-rise – assumes Seattle needs at least a 7-acre site, located near a major arterial; and
• High-rise – assumes Seattle needs one full downtown city block.

• Land acquisition, construction costs and operating costs vary by design. Seattle has looked at jails across the country, as well as the two operated by King County, the downtown high-rise jail and the low-rise Regional Justice Center in Kent.  

• Based on its research and analysis, Seattle believes a low-rise jail is safer for staff and inmates, and will cost less to build and operate. Seattle has hired a consultant to help it evaluate these assumptions. The City expects to have this information by July 2008.

• Site selection is an important part of the planning for a new municipal jail. Seattle must identify and acquire a site before the end of the year to keep the project on track.

• Seattle initially reviewed 35 potential sites for a low-rise municipal jail. The list included sites that were:
• Not located in residential zones;
• Had easy access to arterials; and
• Already several acres in size or could be assembled from adjacent properties.

• From there, Seattle narrowed the list of 35 sites to 11 potential sites, using the following additional factors:

• As the City progresses with its site review process, these factors have been adjusted to reflect refinement of our facility needs based on ongoing studies. For example, the minimum site size was initially 5+ acres and the minimum site depth was 300 feet. After additional analysis, we concluded that 7+ acres would be required with a minimum dimension of 350 feet, resulting in further narrowing of site options.

• Key factors in evaluating the 35 potential sites are summarized on page 3 of this pdf file. Sites not meeting the updated size and configuration requirements were considered "fatally flawed" and were eliminated from additional study.

• Based on the aforementioned factors and after additional research and analysis, Seattle has narrowed the list of 11 potential sites to four potentially viable sites:
  • 11762 Aurora Ave. N.
  • 1600 W. Armory Way (Interbay)
  • Highland Park Way Southwest & West Marginal Way
  • 9501 Myers Way S.
    
    View map of the four sites (.pdf format)
    View aerial photographs of the four sites (.pdf format)

• Seattle is now conducting additional research and analysis, and seeking public input regarding these four sites. In addition, the City is also asking the public for its ideas on siting a municipal jail, including additional potential sites which have not yet been studied. Seattle welcomes an opportunity to review those suggestions using the factors applied to the 11 sites reviewed to date.
  • View evaluation of additional suggested sites (.pdf format)
    
    
• Many residents have suggested Seattle choose a municipal jail site away from public schools, which is difficult to do in a dense urban setting. As this map shows, it is difficult to find a location within the city that is not within a mile of a school.

• Many residents have expressed concern about safety should a municipal jail be located in their vicinity. The City is looking at ways to safeguard the area around a jail, including services and transportation for released inmates, as well as other ways to ensure public safety. A U.S. Department of Justice study examined seven different jail sites in four states and found that there weren't any significant differences in crime rates between neighborhoods with jails and comparable neighborhoods without jails (and, in some cases, the crime rates were lower).

• Regardless of where the municipal jail is ultimately built, Seattle is committed to building a well designed facility that will be a good neighbor.