County Downtown Jail: No frills, well-worn, falls below ODRC standards
When operable, the push of a button clicks open a formidable metal-barred door - a quintessential element of any prison movie ever filmed - allowing visitors access to the Miami County jail in downtown Troy.
The experience stepping from inside the county sheriff’s offices into the incarceration facility is transformative, much like Marty McFly exiting Doc Brown’s DeLorean after a journey back in time. Built in 1972, the sheriff’s office/jail facility that occupies approximately one-third of the space of the Miami County Safety Building located on West Main Street is a tale of two facilities.
Although painted many times throughout its history, the jail today resembles what Alcatraz must have resembled 10 years following its closure. It’s spartan with no frills and well-worn, with ubiquitous graffiti throughout; much of which offering pointed, not-so-kind words for law enforcement.
Advancing through the entrance, one first encounters a detox room that conjures up images of what Paul Newman’s Lucas Jackson character might have experienced when ordered to “The Box,” in the seminal prison film, “Cool Hand Luke.” Moving further along, visitors pass a processing area, showers and a diminutive room where inmates meet with their legal representation.
Upon reaching one of the cell blocks, an acrid waft greets—and gut punches—anyone wishing to enter the confines. Each self-contained block features beds, toilet facilities and a modest common area. The space falls well below the square-footage standards and specifications set forth by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation & Corrections (ODRC).
“Miami County is better than this,” said Miami County Sheriff Dave Duchak. “Jail is jail. It’s no place you want to go. But you have to treat everyone humanely from staff to inmates to medical and mental health professionals.”
Duchak emphasized it’s a misconception that the jail is filled entirely with unsavory characters. Many who are incarcerated are mothers or brothers who have made simple mistakes.
The facility in its current state has an inadequate number of infirmary beds and is lacking in medical and mental health facilities. The transportation of inmates for medical or mental health services is always filled with inherent risks, said Duchak.
History of the Miami County Jail
There have been several versions of the county jail. The first was a large double-hewed log building located in Staunton Township. In 1841, the building housing Bob’s Shop and the Flash Restaurant in Troy was built as a courthouse and jail. Then in 1854, a new jail was built on the northeast corner of West Main Street and Plum Street in Troy. That served as the county jail until construction of the current facility in 1972.
A minimum-security facility was built between Piqua and Troy in 1999 as a compliment to the downtown jail to house misdemeanor offenders.
Typically Overcrowded
While the ODRC recommends the county house no more than 42 inmates at its downtown facility on a daily basis, Assistant Jail Administrator Nate Collet said the inmate population typically swells into the 60s or 70s post-Covid. The number of inmates at its sister facility is usually in the 80-90 range daily, he added.
The county is unable to house serious and violent offenders at the Incarceration facility as it can only hold minimum security inmates per state minimum jail standards. The jail downtown is where those types of offenders are housed.
“To renovate the downtown jail is not feasible as it would still only be able to hold 42 inmates due to the physical limitation of its size,” Duchak said. “Thus, the only option is to build a full-service jail adjacent to the 25A jail to be able to house those serious and violent offenders today and years into the future.”
A 2025 needs assessment conducted by consultants Henningson, Durham and Richardson Inc., concluded that a new 200-bed maximum security facility, to include 32 medical beds, be built contiguous to the current county Incarceration facility north of Troy. Cost estimates for the new facility range from $90 million to $100 million.
Funding the New Facility
As a result, Miami County Commissioners may consider asking voters to approve a temporary sales tax increase of 0.5% to help pay construction and renovation costs. Commissioners have scheduled two public hearings on the proposed levy – Jan. 22 at 1:40 p.m. and Jan. 27 at 9:10 a.m. Both hearings will be held at the Miami County Safety Building.
The proposal would be placed on the May primary ballot for voter consideration if approved by commissioners, and the tax would take effect Oct. 1, 2026. The tax increase would be a half-percent of a penny. For instance, a purchase made for $100 would cost an additional 50 cents. Groceries/food are exempted from the sales tax.
“It’s a consumption tax that sunsets after 10 years,” said Duchak. With any luck, he said the tax will possibly terminate in year eight or nine.
Miami County Auditor Matt Gearhardt is optimistic that state and federal funds can also be procured as a supplement for the local contribution to the cost for the new facility.
Were the levy to fail, Duchak indicated taxpayers would still have to shoulder the burden of paying to upgrade the jail in its current state. Also, the longer the wait the greater the cost for a new facility becomes.
If it were to pass, however, the county would retain a small footprint of the jail at the current site, replete with holding cells for those attending hearings in municipal or common pleas court. The remainder of the area would be retrofitted as new office space. The hope would be for ground to be broken on the new complex in seven to eight months, said Duchak.
Jail Tour Available
Commissioners are currently hosting jail tours in support of the proposed sales tax hike. Daytime sessions commence at 11:30 a.m. and will be held on January 31, February 14, 28, March 28, April 11, 18 and 25. Evening sessions beginning at 6:30 p.m. will take place on February 4, March 4 and April 1, 15 and 29. All tours will begin in the main lobby of the safety building. Additional group tours can also be arranged by appointment through the commissioner’s office at commissioners@miamicountyohio.gov, or by calling 937-440-5910.
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