Codington County Sets Maximum Price for New Jail, Including Full Sheriff’s Office Completion
- Steve Jurrens
- Sep 18
- 1 min read
Northeast Radio SD News - Watertown, SD - At Tuesday’s meeting, the Codington County Commissioners unanimously approved a final amendment to the construction manager-at-risk (CMAR) contract for the new county jail and sheriff’s office facility. The guaranteed maximum price for construction was set at $32,665,397, allowing the county to move forward with all planned alternates—including full completion of the sheriff’s office.
Commissioner Lee Gabel explained that the CMAR system, which enables the construction manager to coordinate directly with subcontractors, has created a favorable bidding environment. “We’re right on budget,” Gabel said, “and that enables us to include all 10 alternates—things like security cameras, flooring upgrades, and finishing out the sheriff’s office.”
The approved amount covers construction costs only and does not include soft costs such as architectural services or project management fees from Tegra. When combined with the county’s $8 million construction budget and bond funding, the project remains within the anticipated initial $37 million total.
Commissioner Myron Johnson noted that the county had allocated approximately $7.7 million in reserves to supplement the bond and that interest earnings may help keep the project under budget.
Initially, the sheriff’s office was expected to be completed in phases over several years. With this amendment, the entire facility will be built at once—an outcome commissioners called “very good news” for the county.
The motion to approve the amendment passed unanimously.
