County Negotiating with Owner of Old Walmart for Possible Detention Center
Flathead County officials expressing initial interest in Evergreen building for potential relocation of sheriff's office
By Dillon Tabish
With jail space at a minimum, Flathead County officials are negotiating with the owner of the former Walmart in Evergreen to possibly acquire the vacant site and relocate the detention center and sheriff’s office.
Flathead County Administrative Officer Mike Pence is leading the early discussions with the site owners. If the two sides can agree on preliminary terms, Pence said he will notify the three county commissioners, who would have to give approval for any further study or action before acquiring the space.
“We’ll have to see where it all goes. I think it could be really nice to repurpose that building, though,” Commissioner Pam Holmquist said. “As a prospect for the sheriff, I think it does have some merit.”
Last month Sheriff Chuck Curry toured the empty building and is encouraged by the initial possibility.
“Something like this bears some consideration,” he said.
When the current jail was built in 1987, it was initially equipped to hold 63 people. The average daily inmate population is close to 100, Curry said, forcing staff to double bunk inmates and consistently turn away non-violent offenders.
“There’s just not enough space. We never turn away people who have to be there, but we never have space for all the warrants that should go to jail,” Curry said. “It’s a continuing worsening issue and it’s not going to get better.”
The Walmart could be renovated and allow the detention center and sheriff’s office, including personnel, to move to the Evergreen location. This could free up the current space at the county campus, Curry said.
“Being able to move the operations would certainly be beneficial to everybody’s operations, not just ours,” he said.
The county has discussed expanding the detention center and sheriff’s office or developing a new space for years. The commission has agreed to devote funds for possible plans in the future.
“It has been identified as a need,” Holmquist said. “We just have to do it in the most economical way and still have a quality detention center.”
The former Walmart on U.S. Highway 2 East opened in 1995 and closed in 2010 after the Walmart Supercenter was built in Kalispell’s Hutton Ranch. The building, which is roughly 90,000 square feet, has sat vacant in the years since.