Road patrol staff are expected to be the first to move to the new office, followed shortly by corrections employees and inmates.

The county will likely have to hire additional employees to properly man the facility, but how many new hires are needed is not yet known.

On Wednesday, Sheriff Steve Kieliszewski toured the $11.6 million structure as workers wrapped up electrical, plumbing, flooring, and security work. He said a lot of progress has been made in the last few months.

Once construction is done, furniture will be moved in and then planning and training will commence, the sheriff said. Because of the facility’s size, and the new technology there, a period of minor repairs and adjustments to operations after opening is expected, he said.

News File Photo The jail cells at the new jail in Alpena will remain empty for a little longer, as the county tries to hire enough corrections officers to properly maintain the inmate population at the new facility.

The Michigan Department of Corrections will dictate how many employees are needed to run the new jail, but Kieliszewski said the state won’t complete a workforce study until after the facility is open. The county’s lead consultant, Rod Miller, of Community Resource Service, is doing a study and will make a recommendation to the county and the MDOC, and then the state will either endorse that study or set its own staffing minimum.

If the proper staffing level is not met and maintained, the county could be disciplined by the state.

“We’re going to have to hire a few more to bring it up to where we will need it, and, even then, it will still require overtime,” Kieliszewski said. “If we don’t have the minimum amount of employees that was recommended, the state can hold us in non-compliance. That would be embarrassing for a new jail, to be held in non-compliance.”

Kieliszewski said he doesn’t believe the state would force the county to discontinue operations at the new jail, but its 98-bed capacity could be reduced. He said a warning would likely be issued and the county would need to take corrective action.

Kieliszewski said he hopes that doesn’t become an issue.

News Photo by Steve Schulwitz The interior of the new Alpena County Jail, which should be complete and operational by February, is seen on Wednesday.

“We always want to be in compliance,” he said.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.