Santa Barbara County is moving ahead with a plan to make major improvements to its outdated main jail complex in Santa Barbara.
The more than half-century-old Santa Barbara Main Jail doesn’t meet American with Disabilities Act requirements. It was built nearly two decades before the law was passed.
On Tuesday, Santa Barbara County Supervisors approved a $6.3 million construction contract to modernize the jail.
The jail’s intake and reception center will be renovated, and permanent space will be added for a pre-booking area, room for clinicians, and additional space for attorneys to meet with their clients.
The renovations will eliminate the need for an office trailer parked next to the jail. The full project is expected to cost around $10 million. Groundbreaking is planned for later this month.
The main jail had dealt with overcrowding issues for decades, but these were alleviated with the opening of the state-of-the-art northern branch jail in Santa Maria in 2022.
