PORT ANGELES – The state Department of Corrections will lend a hand to Clallam County jailers who fell $1 million short of remodeling their overcrowded facility.
The help will come in the form of engineering and designing expertise from corrections construction experts.
Clallam County commissioners and Sheriff Bill Benedict had hoped to add 24 beds to the jail that was built to house 96 prisoners but has held as many as 135.
When they opened bids on the project April 3, however, even the lowest offer was $1.1 million over their $2.5 million estimate.
“We would be pleased to send some of our most experienced engineers to Clallam County for a day to do what the professionals call ‘value engineering,'” said Secretary of Corrections Harold W. Clarke on a Thursday visit to the jail.
