The concept of a regional jail for Outagamie, Winnebago and Calumet counties is dead. The Outagamie County board shot down a proposed study last night, after failing to get the necessary two-thirds majority to approve the county's share of funding.
Supervisor Paul Hirte was disappointed. He says they'll continue to look at other options, because the current jail is filling up. He says they won't be able to find out how much money they could save through a regional approach, though.
The Winnebago and Calumet county boards already had approved the study.
Outagamie County supervisor Al Schmidt says he won't vote for a new jail, so it doesn't make sense to spend money on a study. He says the county needs to take another look at which inmates are considered "criminals" and which ones could participate in "alternatives to incarceration programs."
The three counties created a regional jail committee last year to explore a possible partnership.