BILLINGS — When a jail opened in the Montana town of Hardin in mid-2007, it was expected to help revive the town’s economy and add more than 100 jobs.
But the $27 million jail sat empty for seven years with no contract to fill its cells, according to the Billings Gazette.
State officials opted not to house inmates there and the Montana attorney general initially said the jail couldn’t hold out-of-state inmates either.
A Helena District Court judge later overturned the attorney general’s opinion.
New management and a federal contract came in late 2014, and the jail had as many as 250 inmates at its peak. But the contract collapsed and the population had dwindled to nine by November 2015.
Two Rivers Authority is the town’s economic development organization that owns the jail. According to the group, the jail needs 200 to 250 inmates to break even. For it to be profitable and pay down debt, the jail would need at least 350 inmates.
Jeff McDowell, the authority’s executive director, says the jail’s debt is roughly $40 million.
“The cash flow through the detention center is not sufficient at this point to service the debt,” he said.
Meanwhile, Montana county jails are facing overcrowding, which McDowell sees as an opportunity.
“We could fill that place tomorrow if Yellowstone County, for example, sent their excess inmates over,” he said.
Yellowstone County Sheriff Mike Linder says he’s spoken with Hardin jail officials about a possible deal and toured the facility.
“If we sent inmates to them, and we had to pay them to hold them, it would not make good economic sense,” he said.
Linder said in June that Yellowstone County stands to make $2.9 million housing state prison inmates at its jail this year.
The jail is continuing to seek contracts and has applied with the American Correction Association for accreditation.
“I think we’ve proved that we’re here,” he said. “We’re open, and we’re going to stay open.”