Portsmouth officials want to begin expanding jail

By Jen McCaffery
The Virginian-Pilot

PORTSMOUTH

City officials want the council to pass a resolution tonight that would start the process of expanding the Hampton Roads Regional Jail .

The move would allow the jail’s board of directors to ask for an exemption from the General Assembly’s moratorium on new jail construction.

“Hopefully, the General Assembly will be receptive to that, and we can find out what our options are,” Councilman Bill Moody Jr . said.

City leaders have long lamented the use of a prime waterfront site for the aging Portsmouth City Jail . Some council members have advocated tearing it down and sending inmates to an expanded regional jail. But if the city jail were to close, some Portsmouth deputies’ jobs could be in jeopardy.

“I have no problem getting rid of the building on the waterfront,” Portsmouth Sheriff Bill Watson said. “But I don’t want to give up my jail. I’m not giving up one deputy’s position.”

In 2004, at the request of Portsmouth officials, the General Assembly authorized the regional jail to study the need for more beds . Then later that year, city officials called off the study, because of cost projections for the project.

The city can ask to study a potential expansion only every two years because of the General Assembly’s budget cycle, said Councilman Steve Heretick . “All we’re doing is trying to preserve the option for the future,” said Heretick, who serves on the Hampton Roads Regional Jail’s board.

The purpose of the study would be to assess “what we’re really going to need a decade from now and what it’s going to cost,” Heretick said.

The regional jail, which opened in 1998 , serves about 1,250 inmates . Four cities – Portsmouth, Norfolk, Newport News and Hampton – send inmates to the facility .

“It’s always good to have a plan, even if you’re not in a position to fund it or make it happen politically,” Moody said.