DAVENPORT, Iowa — Scott County has approved a more than $120 million budget that includes funding for the controversial juvenile detention center.
After several community meetings and discussions, the project is now moving forward following a board of supervisors meeting Thursday, March 17.
"It's completely unnecessary," supervisor Ken Croken said.
The county will use roughly $7 million out of its $33 million federal American Rescue Plan Act funding to build the new center.
"Move forward with a center," supervisor John Maxwell said.
The current facility houses 18 beds, and the new building will have at least 40.
"Juvenile detention, incarceration is declining nationwide," Croken said.
The project has seen months of pushback with critics saying the answer is not locking kids up.
"We need this board to swift resources from prisons, detention centers, to restorative justice, education and community development," Davenport NAACP President Mike Guster said.
"The proven technique to try to help juveniles who are heading in that direction is not incarceration," one resident told the board.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa penned a letter on Thursday, Feb. 3 threatening legal action against the Scott County Board of Supervisors for its proposed use of federal COVID-19 relief funds to build a new juvenile detention center.
In the letter, the 10 social justice organizations expressed their "deep concern" with the county's vote to preliminarily approve the expansion and argued the proposal is an improper use of ARPA funds.
"Because the use of ARPA funds to build a new juvenile detention center facility is unlawful and will only exacerbate the racial disparities in Iowa's juvenile delinquency system, we are asking you to vote to not approve this proposal and take prompt remedial action to redirect these funds as necessary," the organizations said in the letter.
A crowd of people at Thursday's meeting said the federal money should go towards paying essential workers who were not paid COVID stimulus checks due to immigration status.
"It should be your priority to invest in other essential workers," one woman told the board.
"You will not get your food. You would not get many of the essentials that you need without us," another resident said.
Still, some county supervisors said the move must happen.
"Time is of the essence, and every day that goes where we have juveniles away from Scott County, it's costing us money," Maxwell said.
The new building, which the county already owns, will be just south of Davenport's 53rd Street, on Tremont Avenue near Davenport Memorial Park.
County leaders will tear down the building on Tremont Avenue. Construction is expected to begin in fall 2022.