In a 3–2 vote last week, Charlottesville City Council approved a plan to issue over $50 million in bonds to finance the renovation of the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, with cost estimates coming in over previous expectations.
The jail’s authority board asked to issue up to $41 million in revenue bonds to renovate and expand the facility, which hasn’t been substantially updated since it opened in 1974. An additional $12 million bond issue would come in the form of a grant anticipation note, backed by an expected state grant to cover a portion of the project’s cost.
In a 2024 survey published by the facility, inmates noted poor conditions that failed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards, including visible mold on the showers, an unreliable plumbing system, poor mental health services and a lack of programming.
The jail authority plans to add a second floor, a new entryway, a mental health unit, more classroom space, a larger visitation space and other features.
The People’s Coalition, a local justice reform group, has consistently organized against the project and advocated for funds to be redistributed into support for housing, mental health care, food security and local schools.
“When the federal funding is slashed, state budgets and local budgets inevitably feel the strain,” said Ruby Cherian, an attorney at Legal Aid Justice Center who is also a member of the People’s Coalition. “At a time when our resources will be stretched even thinner, we must prioritize the services our community truly needs, not a jail expansion.”
While the renovation will expand the physical building’s footprint, the number of inmates the jail can house is not increasing. Councilor Michael Payne told VPM News that the city’s policy goal is still to reduce the jail’s population, especially through increased home electronic monitoring and programs like Home to Hope designed to reduce recidivism.
Costs for the project came in above previous estimates in large part due to recent tariffs on metal, which Vice Mayor Brian Pinkston called “deeply frustrating.”
Payne and Natalie Oschrin voted against the project.
“We've heard from People's Coalition, we've heard from all kinds of people who don't want the city to spend their money this way. We have heard from nobody who wants the city to spend their money this way,” said Oschrin. “I understand wanting the conditions of the jail to be better and that there is some amount of renovation that is worthwhile, [but] I'm still not sold on it being this amount of project.”
Councillor Lloyd Snook voted in favor of the proposal, saying that the county could support both the needs of the jail and housing and education initiatives.
“We'll take care of the problems that are most serious — some of which actually have health consequences,” he said.
Construction is expected to begin Sept. 15 and last two years.
