ROGERS CITY — The Presque Isle County Jail’s roof replacement project has been slowed by worse-than-expected roof conditions and rainy weather.

County Sheriff Joseph Brewbaker said county officials expected the project to be complete by now, but the crew with Doyle Roofing told him they’ve never worked on a roof in such bad condition.

“It’s been really tough for them to remove the old roof,” he said. “It was in such bad condition, it slowed them way down. It’s not coming off the way they anticipated.”

Brewbaker said he believes the project will continue for another three weeks.

Additionally, he said the rainy weather hasn’t helped, because the crew cannot work on the roof when it’s raining.

Despite the delays, Brewbaker said the cost of the project is not expected to increase. The county is paying Doyle Roofing $142,700 to replace the jail’s roof, which has been leaking for the past 15 years.

Brewbaker previously told The News the leaks have gotten increasingly worse over the past three years and have reached a point where the roof must be replaced.

Half the cost — or $71,350 — was paid up front to cover the cost of the materials. County officials are using money from the general fund to pay for the project.

The company was selected from three firms and was the lowest bidder.

While the roof is currently being replaced over the offices, Brewbaker said officials expect crews to begin to address the leaks in the jail’s skylights later this week. Because those skylights are located above inmate cells, the sheriff said officials are waiting to hear whether inmates need to be relocated.

“If they feel they have to remove all the panels to seal it correctly, we’ll move the inmates for their safety and for security reasons,” he said. “We’re not sure we’re going to have to do that, yet. If they do not have to remove the inner liner, we do not have to move inmates to another jail.”

Brewbaker said they already made arrangements with Montmorency County, in case they need to relocate the inmates. If the inmates have to be moved, he said it would be on either Friday or Monday.

Crystal Nelson can be reached at 989-358-5687 or cnelson@thealpenanews.com.