Work progressing on New OC Detention Center

Construction is well underway on the new Oconee County Detention Center and now the facility is starting to take shape explains, Oconee County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Jimmy Watt. “The pre-fabricated steel cell units have arrived on scene and they will be put in their proper places as the building continues. Just think earlier this year, there was basically nothing in that area. Clear cutting land and getting ready to lay the foundation and now if you drive by there is a building there that is currently being built. We still anticipate an open sometime in the summer of next year.” The new Oconee County Detention Center will be a two-story facility with 200 beds but with the capability to increase to 240 beds in emergencies. Everything will be enclosed, including the recreation areas for inmates. The new jail is being constructed on land between the Law Enforcement Center and Westview Cemetery in Walhalla.