Response - San Diego County Sheriff*

Published: July 05, 2007 9 pages

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⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 1 findings

F99 Page 1

Finding: "The current Grand Jury heard testimony from a County official who admitted not inspecting Las Colinas in recent years." We Cannot Agree nor Disagree: To the best of our knowledge, all required inspections have been conducted; i.e. The Grand Jury, Fire, Environmental Health, Title 15 & 24, etc. Documentation is available as to those inspections. The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 Finding: "Notwithstanding the annual recommendation of five out of six previous Grand Jury Reports that Las Colinas be replaced, one County official who had not visited there recently testified that replacement was not a high priority on past County-wide Capital Improvement Needs Assessments (CINA)." We Agree in part: The San Diego Sheriff's Department supports past Grand Jury Findings calling for the replacement of the Las Colinas Detention Facility; and that it be a high priority for the County-wide Capital Improvement Needs Assessment. Finding: "The Grand Jury heard testimony from a County official who claimed to have inspected Las Colinas within the past two years. This official was unaware of the rotting floors and the grossly insufficient bathroom facilities." We Cannot Agree nor Disagree Finding: "If those excess funds had been allocated to a Las Colinas construction trust fund, three quarters of the current proposed construction cost estimate would be covered." We Agree in part: While the Sheriff has ended the past eleven years with a positive fund balance, a portion of these funds were committed each year to funding needed infrastructure projects within the Sheriff's Department or other County Departments.

Recommendations 7

07-95
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 The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: "Come to an agreement on priorities that will pave the way for the replacement of Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility with all possible speed." We Agree; the recommendation has been implemented: The Board of Supervisors recently accepted the Capital Improvement Needs Assessment for FY 2007-08. A replacement for the aging Las Colinas Detention Facility is the highest un-funded priority on this assessment list. The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 Grand Jury
07-96
Page 1

 The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department and the City of Santee officials: "Make a prompt, joint, unannounced visit to Las Colinas." We Agree: The San Diego Sheriff's Department provides robust oversight in addition to the on site facility staff. We have in place a Standards and Compliance Team responsible for the continuous oversight and inspection of that facility. We would welcome any additional cooperative visitation and/or inspection. Also, there are numerous oversight and inspection bodies associated with the operation of the Las Colinas Detention Facility; such as: State Corrections Standards Authority Fire Marshall Environmental Health Title 15 Medical Grand Jury CLERB Sheriff's Senior Management Grand Jury
07-97
Page 1

 The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: "Encourage the firm producing the Environmental Impact Report to move posthaste to finish it." We Agree; the recommendation has been implemented: The Department of Public Works is working closely with Dudek Engineering + Environmental, the County's selected consultant, to complete a comprehensive EIR as quickly as possible. Grand Jury
07-99
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 The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 "Direct the Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility Maintenance Department to continue renovations of older, modular buildings until a new facility can be constructed." We Agree; the recommendation has been implemented: The San Diego Sheriff's Department has spent approximately $1.5 million in the last fiscal year on modular building life-safety improvements to keep the facility operational. These upgrades are in addition to approximately $1.2 million that is spent by the County on routine maintenance. The completion of an independent condition assessment of the Department's detention facilities in the spring of 2007 enables the Department to prioritize jail maintenance projects and categorizes life/health/safety projects as the most critical. As an example, the County has invested more than $2.5 million in the past two years to centralize door control systems and upgrade dormitory floors, roofs, and restrooms; to upgrade security cameras and recording capabilities; replace HVAC air supply grills; replace hot water boilers; abate asbestos contamination; complete preventative maintenance of the high voltage power supply; and seal and stripe parking lots. These projects are in addition to the over $1 million spent annually for on-going maintenance efforts at that facility. Grand Jury
07-100
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The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: "Consider changing the planned replacement configuration of Las Colinas 90 degrees to a north/south orientation with a setback from Magnolia Avenue." We Agree; the recommendation has been implemented: Two public scoping meetings were held in the fall of 2006 for the EIR Notice of Preparation. Based on feedback received at these meetings and in subsequent correspondence, the Department requested that the planning consultant responsible for preparing the 2003 Development Plan revise the proposed site plan. The resulting revised site plan, (see inset next page), adjusts the facility boundary so that the project follows a north/south configuration and provides for a minimum of 450 feet of setback between the Detention Facility and Magnolia Avenue. This is the preferred project and the focus of impact analyses for the purposes of the EIR, which is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2008. The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 ACCESS EXISTING LCDF - PHASE II PHASE BUFFFR ADMINISTRATION/ TRAINING ENERG 50' BUFFER AND FOOL PROGRAMS ERVIC 50' ROAD AND 66-BED HIGH RISK AND EGREGATION COMPLEX MAS INDUSTRIES/ COMMISSARY WAREHOUSE/ SERVICES MEDIC LAS COLINAS MASTER PLAN Grand Jury
07-101
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The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: "Should develop a shielding buffer zone and berm of trees and shrubs along Magnolia Avenue and continue public access to parking from Cottonwood Avenue to help address concerns of some Santee residents." We Disagree; the recommendation will not be implemented: The Sheriff's Department disagrees partially with that portion of the
07-102
Page 1

The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego County Sheriff's Department: "Decide on a final layout for a new detention facility, obtain final approval of architectural plans and REPLACE LAS COLINAS WOMEN'S FACILITY NOW!!!" We Agree; the recommendation is in the process of being implemented" This recommendation will be implemented in stages, with the first phase already complete. A preferred project layout has the endorsement of the County and is currently under assessment for the Environmental Impact Report. The County and the Department are communicating with various State agencies with an eye toward securing funding for the project. Upon certification of the EIR and all CEQA requirements (anticipated in 2008), the County will begin the design phase for the new facility when funding is approved. Construction on the new facility will begin following design approvals. COMMENDATION: The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury commends San Diego General Services and Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility Maintenance Department personnel for their exemplary efforts to keep this jail open and operational. Because of their dedication, the facility stands today. We Agree In closing, I would like to thank the Grand Jury for their efforts in this investigation. The San Diego Sheriff's Department agrees with the Grand Jury that a replacement for Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility is a high priority and that a new facility should be built as expeditiously as possible. The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 If the Grand Jury needs further clarification or additional discussion, please feel free to contact Commander Al Skoglund of our Detention Services Bureau at (858) 974-2088. Sincerely, 1 Harde William B. Kolender, Sheriff WBK/aas Members, Board of Supervisors cc: Walt F. Ekard, CAO Thomas Pastuszka, Director, Clerk of the Board

Commendations 1

CM1

The 2006-2007 San Diego County Grand Jury commends San Diego General Services and Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility Maintenance Department personnel for their exemplary efforts to keep this jail open and operational. Because of their dedication, the facility stands today. We Agree In closing, I would like to thank the Grand Jury for their efforts in this investigation. The San Diego Sheriff's Department agrees with the Grand Jury that a replacement for Las Colinas Women's Detention Facility is a high priority and that a new facility should be built as expeditiously as possible. The Honorable Janis Sammartino July 5, 2007 Page 9 If the Grand Jury needs further clarification or additional discussion, please feel free to contact Commander Al Skoglund of our Detention Services Bureau at (858) 974-2088. Sincerely, 1 Harde William B. Kolender, Sheriff WBK/aas Members, Board of Supervisors cc: Walt F. Ekard, CAO Thomas Pastuszka, Director, Clerk of the Board

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.